Retired Chief Puts Emergency Skills To Use After Friend Collapses
SILVERTHORNE, Colo. (CBS4) - One week after suffering a massive "widowmaker" heart attack, a Silverthorne man is out of the hospital and thanking his hero.
Jim Schultz was playing pickleball with a group of friends at Rainbow Park last Tuesday. Retired Red, White & Blue Fire Chief Lori Miller was also in the court that day.
She noticed that Schultz, who had been sitting out at the time, wasn't responding to their calls, and she rushed to him as he was collapsing.
Miller immediately began performing CPR and directed others to call 911 and to obtain the automated external defibrillator from the nearby Silverthorne Rec Center.
"I've done this dozens of times in my career but it's totally different when it is a friend you are working on," Miller told CBS4 on Thursday.
With assistance from a Silverthorne police officer and the fellow pickleball players, they continued to perform chest compressions and used the AED until firefighters and paramedics arrived.
After being airlifted to St. Anthony's Central for emergency surgery and a few days in ICU, Schultz has made a stunning recovery and is back home in Silverthorne already.
"I'm incredible grateful," Schultz said.
Now the pickleball group is pushing for more AEDs to be installed near all the courts and all outdoor fields and recreation centers in Summit County.
Matt Kroschel covers news throughout Colorado working from the CBS4 Mountain Newsroom. Send story ideas to mrkroschel@cbs.com and connect with him on Twitter @Matt_Kroschel.