NFL player's collapse echoes girl's death on Glenview soccer field
CHICAGO (CBS) – When one woman watched the Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin collapse on the field in Monday night's football game, it brought back memories of her own experience, when her daughter died after sudden cardiac arrest on a Glenview soccer field.
CBS 2's Sara Machi reports that lead her on a mission to make sure there were more defibrulators on sports fields.
It's a fight against time during cardiac arrest, when the heart stops beating. When Jennifer Lynn Snyder died in 2008, there was no automatic external defibrulator, or AED, available, which are the best bet to revive someone.
But her mom said she sees them everywhere now, easy enough that anyone can use it by following the directions, something that she said makes her feel like Jenny's legacy is still alive.
If you go back to the field where Jenny collapsed during soccer practice with friends, there is even a plaque on the wall above the space where staff house an AED when the fields are in use.
Staff take it inside during the winter months when the sports fields aren't in use.
"They are throughout our entire facility, and we are looking to add even more to our park system based on the user participation and so forth," said Tim Beckman, division director of park & facility services at the Glenview Park District.
They have dozens of these devices now, and the staff is trained to use them even though they're designed to be used by anyone.
Jenny's family has been working for years to raise money and donate AEDs to other youth sports fields.
"Could it have saved her?" Snyder said. "We'll never know. But if often can save people. It is the only way to restart the heart."
Snyder said she watched the Bills-Bengals game on Monday and received messages from friends which reminded her of her own experience.
"If there is any good that comes of it, it is shining a spotlight on the fact that AEDs need to be everywhere," Snyder said, adding that when Jenny died in 2008, "half the people I talked to had no idea what an AED was."
A gold plaque honors Jenny and hangs above the AED near the field where she died.
"She would be so happy to know that she was helping others," Snyder said. "It's great."
If you're not familiar with using these devices, they can tell if there is a heartbeat or not. So they don't work unless they're needed.
There are pictures and audio prompts that show you how to use the device.
