Defibrillators save lives

Ron and Angie Brantley of Russiaville send a Cheer, an update on the health of their son, Drew, and a request for other school systems to follow Western’s lead in purchasing defibrillators:

“On Wednesday, Feb. 17, our 17-year-old son Drew was given a second chance at life.

“We want to start by thanking God for putting him in the right place at the right time for this horribly wrong incident to occur.

“While participating in a basketball game during his weight training class, Drew collapsed for no apparent reason. Because Western School Corp. had an automated external defibrillator (AED) on hand, Drew is alive today. Western actually has 12 of these devices, and they were purchased approximately three years ago by Superintendent Peter O’Rourke, at the urging of athletic director Rick Fields and school nurse Brenda Strunk.

“Words cannot express our gratitude to everyone involved in Drew’s situation, but we would like to recognize the school nurses, teachers and students, Russiaville ambulance paramedics, Howard Regional Health System ER personnel, Lifeline paramedics and all the doctors and nurses at Methodist Hospital.

“Thank you also to our family and close friends for all their prayers, help and support during this time. There are also so many people we do not know who prayed for Drew and our family during this time, and we appreciate that so much!

“We want the public to be aware of the need for these AED devices at the schools. We were lucky because our school has them; someone else may not be as lucky. We had been told that these devices are very expensive, but our son’s life is priceless – and so are the lives of every other student in our school systems. We urge you to start talking to your schools about this matter.

“Drew is now home from the hospital after having an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) placed, which will regulate his heartbeat if the need would ever arise again. He is feeling much better now, and he looks forward to resuming his normal activities as soon as he gets his doctor’s permission.”

‘They came to our rescue’

Catrea Caldwell of Kokomo sends this Cheer:

“On Feb. 12, we were involved in an accident at the corner of Washington and Defenbaugh. A young lady went through a red light and hit our Trailblazer – twice. It flipped over and, thanks be to God, we were in our seat belts.

“All of a sudden, three men – I don’t know their names, but they came to our rescue – were there before the ambulance arrived. Somehow they managed to remove us through the back of the truck.

“My friend and I are so grateful. We don’t know their names, but to us they were angels! I do believe in angels. This is not the first time angels have come to my rescue.

“However, if you read this and you came to our aid, we want to thank you and may God bless your and yours.

“Thanks be to God, I am happy to report we received no injuries. A special thanks to the EMT, police officers and the people on the scene who were praying for us while we were entrapped.

“Our car was totaled, but we still have our lives. Even the lady who hit us was praying and asking God to protect us.”

Full-page ads frustrate reader

Scott Burton of Kokomo sends this Jeer to the Kokomo Tribune:

“For the first time in many, many years, I am considering dropping my subscription to the Kokomo Tribune. My main reason for this is due to the fact that the Tribune has become an ‘adspaper’ instead of being a newspaper.

“Since when and why does an ad require an entire page to state its message? Where are the news items that would be more relevant to the people of Kokomo and surrounding areas? The Kokomo Tribune has a history of publishing news and informing its readers of important and also enjoyable news.

“I would like to ask the owners and all others involved to rectify this poor judgment in publishing our newspaper and return to the news out there and less full-page ads.

“While realizing that there must be big-money profits from ads, the fact remains that you should be publishing a newspaper, not an ad magazine. So please, we, your subscribers, want and need the news. Let us find it in our hometown newspaper, the Kokomo Tribune.”

Doctor gives compassionate care

Linda Kitchell of Kokomo sends this Cheer:

“At a time when we are frequently frustrated by automated answering machines and the lack of customer service, it’s comforting to know one can still receive excellent customer care here in Kokomo.

“I recently had an oral surgery performed by Dr. Ron Thompson. The procedure started on time and Dr. Thompson explained exactly what he was doing each step of the way to alleviate my anxiety. Once surgery was completed, he took the time to explain methods of controlling pain appropriate for me specifically.

“Then to my surprise, Dr. Thompson personally called me the following morning to see if I had questions or concerns and to see how I was feeling.

“Dr. Thompson’s professionalism and compassion was evident and greatly appreciated.”