Army veteran's death spurs effort to install AEDs at VFW and American Legion posts in Philadelphia suburb
NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP, Pa. (CBS) — A new effort is underway in Delaware County to give veterans access to technology that can save their lives if they ever experience cardiac arrest.
Automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, deliver an electric shock through the chest when the heart suddenly stops working. These small medical devices are found in schools, malls and airports, but not all public places have them.
Pennsylvania state representatives Lisa Borowski and Jennifer O'Mara said they secured a $40,000 state grant that will be used to buy and install AEDs at all VFW and American Legion posts in Delaware County by the end of the year.
"Veterans have given so much to us and to me, this is a very small investment that will have potentially big returns," Borowski said.
The state representatives are partnering with the Newtown Square Fire Company, which will provide VFW staff members with training on how to use AEDs.
Army vet Brian Sharif Taylor was offering shelter on a cold February night to people experiencing homelessness at the American Legion post in Upper Darby when he had a heart attack. His death is spurring an effort to get AEDs installed at all VFW & American Legion posts in Delco. pic.twitter.com/ez69Gs8JFy
— Madeleine Wright (@MWrightReports) September 4, 2024
"It is actually not hard," Louis Rosenthal, a spokesperson for the Newtown Square Fire Company, said. "The hardest thing is to be able to listen to the instructions and even read the instructions."
The catalyst for the representatives' initiative was the death of Army veteran Brian Sharif Taylor, who had a heart attack in February while serving people experiencing homelessness at Upper Darby American Legion Post 214. He was 49 years old.
"He was considered my work husband," Lisa Kelly, commander of Upper Darby American Legion Post 214, said. "I'm thinking if we did have an AED, it may have helped."
According to a study from Johns Hopkins University, AEDs are estimated to save 1,700 lives every year.
Borowski and O'Mara will celebrate the grant for the new AEDs during an event at the Delaware County Veterans Memorial in Newtown Square on Monday, Sept. 16.