By Bill Rautenstrauch
The Observer
UNION COUNTY, Ore. — Wednesday, April 1, was a day like any other at the Union County Senior Center. In the morning, there had been a foot clinic and an art class. At about 11 a.m., just like always, people started coming in for lunch.
Montgomery, a 78-year-old who does volunteer work at the center, had taken up her usual station at the table where people check-in for meals.
She was interacting with guests, the same as she always does, when suddenly the day turned frightening.
“I looked up and a crowd was gathering at table number eight,” Montgomery recalled. “This gentleman was on a chair, and people were holding him up. His lips and head were purple.”
Montgomery, as it turned out, was the right person there at the right time. A long-time water-aerobics instructor at the Grande Ronde Fitness Center, she is trained in CPR.
She knew at a glance the situation was serious. Her training took over and she started giving orders.
“I said, ‘Let’s get him on the floor,” Montgomery said.
At that moment, Frank Thomas, director for Community Connection of Union County, walked into the room. Also CPR-trained, he helped get the man, Pat Faro of La Grande, to the floor. Thomas assessed pulse and respiration.
Faro’s heart was not beating and he was not breathing. Thomas placed a hand on the back of the neck and lifted, opening the airway.
At first, Thomas thought the battle was his alone to win or lose. Then he realized he had a very cool-headed ally at his side. Montgomery took charge of the situation.
“The next thing I was aware of was Gerry giving CPR compressions,” Thomas said.
Montgomery said she doesn’t remember much after that, only that she did compressions as she’d been taught.
And then, the man took a great big breath. One very clear thought occurred to Montgomery.
“I remember thinking it was either his first breath or his last,” she said.
It was a long way from the last, as things turned out. Faro took some more gasping breaths, fighting on his own to live.
“I’ve been here 13 years and I’ve never had anything like this happen,” said Thomas. “The man literally died right in front of us, and Gerry kept him going.”
The whole drama took place in a few minutes, but to Montgomery, Thomas and to people standing by, that short time seemed like an eternity.
Then, to everybody’s great relief, the ambulance crew arrived.
The patient did not yet have a heartbeat, so the paramedics delivered shocks to establish a heart rhythm. Then they whisked Faro off to Grande Ronde Hospital.
People at Community Connection waited anxiously for word on Faro’s condition. Keeping the man alive had been only half the battle; another worry was possible brain damage because of inadequate oxygen supply.
But the CPR had been well done. Faro was stabilized, then sent to Boise to have a faulty valve in his heart repaired. This week, he was resting comfortably at home, very cognizant of himself and his surroundings.
“We’re so grateful that Gerry knew CPR. She just jumped in immediately. She saved his life and his mind,” said Faro’s wife, Margaret.
Added Thomas, “A doctor at Grande Ronde Hospital said that the only reason Peter had a narrow chance of recovery was Gerry’s quick action and leadership.”
For Thomas, the incident reinforced a belief: the more people who know CPR, the better.
Thomas took steps to create the Gerry Montgomery Invitational CPR Course. This month, Community Connection is hosting an American Red Cross-taught class, teaching 20 people — free of charge — how to save a life.
Thomas said the class filled up quickly. A second course is being considered, and the Gerry Montgomery Invitational CPR Course likely will become an annual event.
“I want to empower folks to be everyday heroes, like Gerry,” Thomas said.
As Montgomery pointed out, the vast majority of people who learn CPR will never be called upon to use it.
She had been certified for years, but, until the fateful day of April 1, had never actually done CPR on anything except a practice mannequin.
Right up to the moment, she never thought she would. But when the time came, she was up to the test.
“Learning CPR is a worthwhile investment in time and effort,” she said. “With a little knowledge, I was able to save a life.”
Copyright 2009