Quick action can be life changing.
Two coaches and two of their young student-athletes were recognized Nov. 14 in Texas for saving a stranger’s life.
Early one morning last month, twin sisters Christy and Riley Winkler were about to board a bus back to Clark Senior High after volleyball practice. That was when Riley saw a woman collapse at Plano Senior High.
“At first I thought she had tripped and just fallen,” said Riley Winkler.
However, the woman was in cardiac arrest. The twins immediately got the attention of their coach. The coach and another staff member started CPR, and the teens ran to get automated external defibrillator (AED).
“They responded. They didn’t freak out. They responded in a mature manner,” said coach Tom Kailey, who used the AED before paramedics arrived.
The patient, Julie Koon, is expected to make a full recovery. She is the mother of one of their fellow students at Clark Senior High.
“Very emotional. It was all very emotional when we met her,” said Christy Winkler.
Medical professionals say it was the quick action of the twins and the coaching staff that saved her life.
