Pam Bonin

Save Date: September 5, 2007
Activity: Attending a meeting

I am 28 years old and a sudden cardiac arrest survivor and was diagnosed with Long QT Syndrome.  I suffered a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) at work during a staff meeting and was saved by my coworkers.  They all ran to my aid and were able to perform CPR on me without delay.  That CPR training and immediate jump to action by my coworkers saved my life!  Paramedics brought an automated external defibrillator (AED), which also increased my chances of survival.  I hung on by a string for a couple of days in the hospital and then was able to make a full recovery.  My company (Oliver Winery) now has an AED and all managers are trained to use it!
After two years of asking questions, not getting answers, going through genetic testing and the emotional roller coaster, I made a pledge to myself that since I was blessed enough to survive, I need to help ensure that others survive.  CPR training, accessible AEDs and awareness are my top concerns. 

 Paula Opheim

Save Date: April 5, 2004
Activity: While jogging

I was diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyapathy (HCM), a congenital heart condition, when I was in 8th grade while active in soccer and swimming. At that time my cardiologist gave me the okay to continue sports, but by the time I was a sophomore playing high school soccer, a local teen collapsed on the gym floor during a varsity basketball game. He suffered an SCA and did not survive. He was later found to have HCM. That was when my parents and cardiologist banned me from all high-energy sports.

I was finishing my second year at Purdue University School of Pharmacy when I had an SCA. I began my day by waking early to jog the half mile to the workout facility. I don't remember anything else until I awoke in the ICU and my parents explained to me what happened.. A university police officer happened to be driving his rounds early that morning and saw me collapse next to the workout facility. He and his partner reached me and began CPR. The paramedics arrived with an AED and shocked my heart once, which saved my life!

After being in the hospital for a few days and getting an implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD), I am so happy that my life was spared that day. The more we learn, the more we participate, the more we communicate and the more we care. That is how we keep saving more and more lives.

 Faith Sendelweck

Save Date:
Activity: Playing soccer

I do not remember much of what happened one Sunday in the high school gymn playing soccer. All I remember is diving for a ball and throwing it back. My dad was with me and he remembers seeing me collapse into a curtain hanging from the gym ceiling. Dr. Dean Beckman just happened to be playing basketball with his son there, too, and immediately ran to help. He said I was becoming a little bit lethargic, sat down, became unconscious and then lost my pulse. He started CPR and then used the school's AED to shock my heart.

As it turned out, I had a congenital heart condition that no one knew about. I might not be here had it not been for Dr. Beckman administering CPR and a defibrillator in the gym! I now have my own defibrillator, an ICD,  implanted in my chest.  I know that I am one of a very few that survive a cardiac arrest and am very happy that all the right people and instruments were in place to save me that day.

 Tyler Byall

Save Date: September 20, 2010
Activity: Sleeping

In the summer of 2009, my mom was driving home when she was overtaken by a terrifying feeling. Something bad was going to happen to me when I was 17. She could never shake the feeling but she never told me about it either. She just told me to always be really careful.

Then, about 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 20, the whole family was asleep, and mom woke up, sat up in bed and said to herself, “This is it.” She woke her husband and said, “Go to Tyler. There’s something wrong.” Then they heard a moan come from my room. When they came to me I seemed to be asleep, but when they rolled me over they discovered I had no heartbeat and wasn’t breathing. Mom immediately called 911, and they began CPR.

When the ambulance arrived, paramedics shocked me five times and gave me drugs but couldn’t get a heartbeat. It wasn’t until I arrived at the hospital that doctors managed to get my heart beating, but by then the situation looked grim. The doctors didn't expect me to make it, but I showed them otherwise.

Doctors still have no idea whether this was a one-time episode, but they have implanted a defibrillator in my chest as a precaution.

 Susan Howard

Save Date:
Activity: Attending a meeting

I am a 58 year old school principal for Lowell Elementary School in Warren Township, Indiana. Our school just purchased automated external defibrillators (AEDs) five years ago. Just having the devices available gives us staff and students a sense of security. Last week one of the AEDs did much more: It saved my life!

I was in a staff meeting when I collapsed with sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). The staff’s CPR and AED training kicked in immediately. When they discovered I had no pulse, one staff member called 911, while two others grabbed an AED.

The device administered one shock. When that failed to revive me, the AED gave a second shock, which restored my heartbeat. An ambulance arrived and transported me to the hospital. Doctors said I had experienced ventricular fibrillation — rapid, weak heartbeat that fails to pump blood to the brain. My cardiologist and the paramedics said if not for the defibrillator and the training of the staff, I would have lost my life. CPR/AED training is now an ongoing part of the school district’s AED program. I wish all school districts would follow our lead to save more lives.