( CNN ) -- Marcos Ugarte was doing his homework when he heard the screams . Outside , the high school freshman saw flames shooting from a house several doors down . A man ran through the smoke with devastating news : A 7-year-old boy was trapped on the second floor . Marcos scaled a ladder , broke through a screen , forced open a window and carried the boy to safety . That was six months ago , less than three weeks into the 14-year-old 's freshman year . It 's not how you usually think of a high school student kicking off classes in the fall . And this week , Marcos is having a far-from-average spring break . The Oregon teen received a national award in Washington on Monday , picked in part by people who 've won the prestigious Medal of Honor . Awareness of the medal Marcos won -- the Citizen Service Before Self Honor -- is n't as widespread . But organizers say they hope to turn the spotlight on ordinary Americans to show the acts of courage and self-sacrifice that they say symbolize the country 's spirit . They describe the award as `` the most prestigious civilian award in America . '' Marcos was the youngest person to receive the award , according to his high school , which hailed the news on its website . Candidates are nominated by police , fire officials , mayors , governors and everyday citizens . Recipients of the Medal of Honor , the nation 's highest military award for valor in action , pick the winners . `` The honorees we celebrate today ... are seemingly ordinary Americans , but far from it , really , '' said Jim Miklaszewski , the award ceremony 's emcee and the Pentagon correspondent for NBC News . `` They represent the true spirits of our country , going above and beyond for their communities , our nation and their fellow Americans . '' Three other people were honored this year : . Jesse Shaffer III and Jesse Shaffer IV refused to give up in August of last year as floodwater rose and torrential rain pelted their Louisiana neighborhood , even though local officials had called off rescue efforts . The father-and-son team used their boat to rescue 120 people during Hurricane Isaac , according to award organizers , including a family of five that was clinging to the roof of a trailer . Monsignor Joe Carroll ran a transitional housing center to help homeless people get back on their feet in San Diego , helping more than 1,000 people every day . He `` has gone above and beyond to improve the lives of the homeless in Southern California , and by example throughout the United States , '' award organizers said . The annual awards , which officials from the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation started giving out in 2008 , do make a difference , Brandon Wemhoff said . The 31-year-old won last year for pinning a masked robber to the ground at a Walgreens in Lincoln , Nebraska , in 2011 . People are still giving him hugs of thanks . `` If more people cared about other people and they did things that were actually nice without expecting to get anything out of it , things would work out a lot nicer , '' Wemhoff said . `` We 'd have a lot less crime and a lot less BS , excuse my language , and more people helping people . '' As he prepared to head to Washington to receive the prestigious award , Marcos told The Oregonian newspaper that he 'd told only a few of his friends . Some classmates , he said , have resented all the attention he 's received . `` They think I 've gotten too much fame from it , '' he told The Oregonian . `` I 'm not trying to make it into a bigger deal . '' In some ways , he 's still a typical high school student .
A 14-year-old boy climbed a ladder to pull a child from a fiery Oregon home . The teen is among four Americans chosen for Citizen Service Before Self Honor . A father and son used their boat to rescue 120 people during Hurricane Isaac . A cleric ran a housing center to help homeless people in San Diego .