Hundreds of people received basic CPR training on Saturday, May 31 during Leon County's yearly Press the Chest event at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center. The participants were inspired by the real-life story of a survivor and the people who helped saved his life.
One of those life savers was FSU student Brandon Moore. He and his buddies were playing golf at the city's Hilaman Course when a passerby called them to help another golfer who'd collapsed with cardiac arrest. Moore had this message for the Press the Chest attendees.
"If you see a gentleman waving you down and he looks distressed, go over. You never know the situation you could be a part of and you could change someone's life doing it."
Moore and his buddies certainly changed - and possibly saved - the life of the cardiac victim, Todd Watkins. He was at the event to tell his side of the story.
"My message would be to at least take the time to get prepared so you can help when the time comes - if it does come - and what a gift that will be for whoever that happens to be."
That's a message the crowd at the Civic Center seemed to take to heart as they learned basic life saving techniques on Saturday. Since these annual sessions began in 2011, Leon County has provided CPR instruction to around 16,000 local residents.
