Fort Worth officer saved by heroic coworkers after heart attack
FORT WORTH — Some call it being in the right place at the right time, others call it a miracle. Whatever it was, the life of a police officer was saved last month when a few heroic coworkers knew what to do when he had a heart attack.
"There should be a pedestal and a bright light shining down on this thing, and a picture of Jesus just right here above it," said Terrence Parker, expressing his gratitude for the defibrillator hanging on the wall inside the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex in Fort Worth.
Parker never thought he'd be the one to have a heart attack.
"I thought me working out, I would be good to go," he said.
With 14 years in law enforcement and 31 in the U.S. Army, Parker's background portrays him as the picture of health and strength.
On the outside, you'd never know he had problems with his arteries—and neither did he. That was until he collapsed at work on May 16th.
"We were in shock, we just gathered in a circle and started to pray. We are all a family," said Carolena Gentry, an investigator with the Fort Worth Police Department.
A few officers started chest compressions and grabbed the defibrillator on the wall, shocking Parker six times.
"The next thing I know, I wake up in the hospital. They didn't give up on me, and they saw I wasn't giving up," Parker said.
By what he calls a miracle, Parker awoke with no side effects, a feat doctors tell him is incredibly rare.
"I am just glad I am still here. God isn't done with me yet," he said.
On Tuesday, the Fort Worth City Council recognized Parker and the team of officers who saved him, a gesture he says he will never take for granted.
"I went down and everyone sprung into action. I couldn't be more grateful for everyone who saved my life," Parker said.
Now, he's working on what to do with his second chance.
"I have a purpose. I am still trying to figure out that purpose, but I want to be an advocate for CPR and AED. You never know when you could save someone's life," he said.