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Richmond-Burton High School athletic trainer Julianne Stewart administered a shock to the Poplar Grove man with an automated external defibrillator – one of four the school has on premises. He had suffered a heart attack and collapsed face forward about 7:15 p.m., just before half time, school and emergency officials said.

“Julianne Stewart had the wherewithal to get the AED and … she delivered a shock to revive the gentleman,” Richmond Township Fire Protection District Chief Rick Gallas said. “By the time we got there, he was breathing and starting to talk.”

A Richmond emergency crew took the man, whose name was not released, to Centegra Hospital – McHenry.

Gallas also credited Belvidere Police Department Deputy Chief Dave Ernst, a father who was in the stands for his daughter’s basketball game, for performing CPR on the man before Stewart came over with the defibrillator.

“Dave determined that [the man] was not breathing; he was turning purple, and did CPR on him,” he said.

Richmond-Burton Principal Tom DuBois said the incident was a bit frightening, but that everyone involved responded appropriately and everyone was happy about the positive outcome.

“His son and daughter-in-law just stopped by to thank us,” DuBois said Wednesday morning. “They were on their way to the hospital to go see him. … He appears to be doing OK.”

Gallas said the quick response should greatly benefit the man’s recovery.

“It just goes to show the value of CPR and the use of an AED in the field,” said Gallas, who added that the fire department will present both Ernst and Stewart with a life safety award.

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Sgt. Allen was at the courthouse for a jury trial. But when a man fell to the ground near the Palm Street entrance of the building, Allen’s plans took a detour.

“I was the first person to attend to him. I went over, checked his pulse. He was still breathing, shallow but breathing. It felt like he still had a pulse so I didn’t try any emergency menouvers aside from telling someone to go get an AED.” said Sgt. Allen.

It was a life saving decision on the part of Sgt. Allen. And for the man whose life was saved, he is truly lucky it was Allen on scene. Sgt. Allen is responsible for establishing Atascadero Police Department’s AED program in 2010. He is charge of getting every officer on streeet, trained on the device.

“I’m very happy that I was in the right place at the right time.” Sgt. Allen said modestly.

Both Sgt. Allen, and Anthony, the security guard that ran to grab the AED, are humble about the heroic actions.

“Its not a matter that I was part of it, it’s a matter that everyone around me did a great job. Keeping him alive.” said Anthony.

Anthony and Sgt. Allen hope this close call, serves as a reminder to other people, the importance of AEDs.

“They’re very easy to use, user friendly. You don’t need specified training in order to use a device.” said Allen.

“Just go for it. Do your best to save the person’s life.” said Anthony.

Officers Stephanie Ruzka, Daniel Zintec, and James Sanders were on duty at the Fly and Jay Truck Stop when Benjamin Patrick collapsed waiting in the check out line.

The three officers performed CPR and used a defibrillator to revive Patrick.

Although the three officers are humbled to be honored, they say they were just doing their jobs.

Patrick is alive and well and will be undergoing heart testing and possibly surgery.

According to a press release issued by the department, Detective Andy Harvey and Officer Tony Vella responded to a call on Warren Ave. shortly after 6 a.m. and deployed the AED on the man.

Following the instructions of the AED, the two men “shocked” the patient and began CPR. By the time the ambulance arrived a few minutes later, the patient was conscious and breathing.

The Newton Falls Joint Rescue Squad transported the patient to the hospital. His condition is not known at this time.

Victor Giesbrecht, 61, of Winnipeg, stopped his pickup along an interstate highway in western Wisconsin to help two stranded women change a flat tire. Minutes later, his life was in their hands.

Sara Berg, of Eau Claire, Wis., and her cousin, Lisa Meier, were headed home Saturday night on Interstate 94 when they “heard an awful noise.” They were somewhere between Menomonie and Eau Claire when they pulled to the side of the road with a flat tire — something neither knew how to fix. Meier’s husband was on his way to help when Giesbrecht, who was driving by with his wife, Ann, showed up and asked whether they needed help.

“We were so grateful,” Berg said. “Nowadays, nobody ever really stops to offer their help. It’s kind of scary sometimes, because you really don’t know what you’re getting into.”

Giesbrecht is the type who always wants to stop to help a stranded motorist, his wife said. “He’s the type of person who gives you 100 percent and worries about himself later,” she said.

When Giesbrecht finished, Berg thanked him and they shook hands. Berg recalled Giesbrecht’s farewell words to her: “Someone up above put me in the right place at the right time.’”

And then they parted. Giesbrecht and his wife pulled back onto the interstate. Seconds later, Berg followed.

Less than a quarter mile down the road, Berg noticed Giesbrecht’s red truck pulled over. She passed it and then pulled over herself, figuring the couple may have forgotten something.

No sooner had she gotten out of her car when she saw Giesbrecht’s wife waving frantically at passing motorists.

When she saw Berg, she called out: “I think he’s having a heart attack.”

Berg, a certified nursing assistant trained in CPR, jumped into the truck. Giesbrecht had no pulse and wasn’t breathing. Berg began chest compressions. Meier called 911.

Emergency personnel arrived in about five minutes, “but it always feels like forever at a time like that,” Berg said.

Wisconsin state trooper Kate Sampson arrived first, and gave mouth-to-mouth resuscitation while Berg continued the chest compressions. When two Dunn County sheriff’s deputies arrived, they helped move Giesbrecht out of the truck and to the shoulder, using the vehicle as a buffer from passing traffic. Sampson, along with Meier’s husband, who had just arrived, and the deputy resumed CPR while the second deputy used an automated external defibrillator to deliver shocks to his heart.

“It was a nice twist of fate,” said Fernandes, who is treating Giesbrecht at the Eau Claire hospital. “We know for sure that the CPR the woman did increased his chances for survival.”

Berg pointed out that it was a team effort by several people.

The last few days have been a bit emotional for her and her cousin.

“We both have felt kind of guilty that having helped us caused his health issue,” Berg said. “But people keep telling us that maybe it put us in the right place at the right time when he was going to need help.”

Ann Giesbrecht, who was also part of her husband’s good luck when she guided their vehicle to the shoulder during his heart attack, is grateful. According to a statement issued by Mayo Clinic Health System, she talked to Berg on Sunday and told her, “You actually saved his life.”

Officers responded to Island Bingo on Portion Road in Farmingville around 8:15 p.m. after a 911 caller reported that a woman was unconscious, not breathing and CPR was in progress, according to police.

Police said the officers applied an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) and the woman’s pulse was revived.

The 51-year-old woman was transported by Farmingville Ambulance to Stony Brook University Medical Center where she was listed in critical condition.

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The student was taking part of a P.E. class outside at East Meadows Elementary School when he suddenly collapsed. But a two-minute response and life-saving training got his heart back in rhythm.

Logan Powell the Survivor

The boy is recovering at Primary Children’s Medical Center following the heroic efforts of those who first noticed him. His doctors say he’s still in critical condition, but his heart is beating on its own and he’s breathing on his own. He remains on oxygen as a precaution.

“Our main concern is for the student and their family,” said Nebo School District spokeswoman Lana Hiskey.

Friends were playing together when the young boy collapsed. One of the boy’s friends told the playground supervisor, who discovered the boy was not breathing and had no pulse.

“Our adult personnel moved quickly, called 911, and the emergency response vehicle got here very quickly,” Hiskey described. “(They) promptly took the student to a medical facility.”

The police got there in two minutes and tried to revive the boy with CPR, but only got a couple of breaths out of the boy. That’s when they used an Automated External Defibrillator to shock his heart back into action.

The boy was taken to the Payson Hospital before being airlifted to Primary Children’s Medical Center. Doctors still don’t know what made the boy go into cardiac arrest.

“Luckily, a lot of the students were in class,” Hiskey said.

The school sent a note home with all of the students to let parents know about the incident. It concludes by saying, “We are proud of the trained school staff that responded so well to the emergency.”

The boy’s aunt said the family is grateful to the P.E. teacher, the secretary and the Spanish Fork Polic Officer that saved the boy’s life.

The Nebo School District was already in the process of putting defibrillators in its schools before the Thursday’s event.

“We think it’s important to get those in every one of our schools,” Hiskey said.

Steve Sassaman said he felt a bit of indigestion. And then he pitched forward so suddenly that his face hit the floor.

“They always say that’s when heart attacks happen, on Monday morning,” Althea Sassaman said. “He just fell like a tree, right on the tile floor. It cracked so hard it sounded like the floor cracked.”

Althea Sassaman called 911 for what looked like a head injury but quickly realized the real problem — her husband’s heart had stopped and he wasn’t breathing.

She administered CPR until two Susquehanna Twp. police officers arrived, and lucky for her husband, one already had four lifesaving medals to his credit.

After they arrived at the Sassamans’ Mountaindale home, Somma performed rescue breathing and Adams did chest compressions and used one of the automatic external defibrillators that Susquehanna Twp. police keep in their cars.

When AEDs detect the lack of a heartbeat, they jolt the heart back to life with an electric shock.

Adams, a former EMT who trains department personnel in AED use and CPR, had to use the device twice — and the second time did the job.

“The cardiologist said the compression [from CPR] sort of keeps things going, but it’s the defibrillator that’s lifesaving,” Steve Sassaman said.

Helping a heart attack victim start to breathe again is “a great feeling,” Adams said. In his previous saves in 2003 and 2005, he used AEDs to revive heart attack victims, performed rescue breathing and prevented a suicide, he said.

“It’s great to know that you’ve made a difference in somebody’s life, and they’re going to get a second chance with their family and get some time with their loved ones a little bit longer,” he said.

Steve Sassaman, who had no history of heart trouble, remembers nothing about his cardiac arrest. He received catheterization and got three stents in his heart. He wears a monitoring device that could defibrillate if it’s needed again.

Without his wife’s actions and the AED on hand, Sassaman said he might not have survived.

“With every minute that passes, your chance of survival decreases by 10 percent,” the Susquehanna Twp. resident said. “If AEDs are right there, we can save so many lives.”

Althea Sassaman said the township officers kept their cool while she “was very bent out of shape.” She told them, “You have no idea how much I appreciate what you did.”

Sassaman remembered his only previous encounter with police — getting pulled over when his car’s headlight was out.

“A lot of times with the common man or woman, that’s the only time you think of the police department. Until something personal like this happens …¤you realize how valuable they are, and all the skills they have to help people,” he said. “I looked at their emblems on their sleeves, and it says, ‘Protect and serve,’ and that’s it. Protect and serve.”

“It appeared nobody was driving,” he said. “I got out and ran up to the bus and figured that I would jump in and stop it.”

When Collins threw open the door, however, he found the driver, a 65-year-old Milwaukee man, slumped over without a pulse and two special needs children aboard.

“I stopped the bus and threw it in park,” he said. “Another guy ran up behind me, and we pulled him out and started to administer CPR.”

An Elm Grove police officer was on the scene within minutes of receiving a 911 call, and used a defibrillator to shock the driver’s heart, Police Chief Jim Gage said.

Elm Grove paramedics arrived and took the bus driver to the Wheaton Franciscan Heart Hospital in Wauwatosa while police and bystanders stayed with the children aboard the bus.

“We just kind of tried to entertain them until someone showed up to drive the bus,” Collins said.

A relative of the victim, who has not been identified due to health privacy laws, last reported that he was still recovering in a hospital, Gage said.

“In the end, that’s all that really matters,” Collins said.

Sam Shafer & Bob Wright the Saviours

A 17-year-old Decorah cross country runner collapsed Thursday evening while running in the Rich Engel Cross Country Classic at Birdsall Park in Cedar Falls. A spectator at the event, Dr. Greg Hoekstra, administered CPR until Cedar Falls police officer Sam Shafer and reserve officer Bob Wright arrived on the scene. The officers had an automated external defibrillator and administered a shock to jump-start the teen’s heart.

He was taken to Sartori Memorial Hospital.

Sartori personnel called the on-scene response a “textbook save” and noted that CPR alone most likely would not have saved the teen’s life.

Adam Riley, activities director for Decorah High School, said the student is doing well but was still in Cedar Falls for testing as of Friday afternoon.

“We’re very appreciative of the efforts of the Cedar Falls Police Department and Sartori hospital,” Riley said Friday. “We very easily could have lost a student yesterday.”

Cedar Falls police have been carrying the defibrillators in each squad car for about eight years. Each officer is recertified to use the device each year.

“Frequently, we’re on the scene before ambulances and paramedics, so you have to do what you can,” said Police Chief Jeff Olson. “We’re just thrilled when we can do something like this to help.”