Archive - Feb 6, 2009

On Wednesday, February 4th, I made a presentation of the first ten AEDs that I purchased for the fire stations on the island of St. Croix, US Virgin Islands.  I have been actively soliciting funds from the community with the intention of purchasing fifteen of them.  I decided to purchase the first ten so at least they can be put to use and the donors will see that their money is being put to good use.  Everyone on the island is so excited to have these devices in place.  After I purchse the rest of them for the fire stations, I will be keeping up with the fund raising to purchse them for the police, schools, nursing homes and parks.  I have teamed up with a cardiologist who has come with me to meetings and radio talk shows to explain the medical side of AEDs.  This has been a fantastic experience.  If anyone has an idea of a source of funds for AEDs for someone outside of the continental US, I would appreciate the information.

Fridley High School was playing Simley on a Thursday night, December 13, 2007 in St Paul, MN. There were five minutes left in the game, when the 49-year-old referee, Dale Wakasugi, suffered a cardiac arrest.

“I went down, bam, and it was lights out. I don’t remember a thing, but a 16-year-old girl from the high-school ran out of the stands and started CPR,” Dale said in awe. The girl with the fortitude was 11th-grader Lindsey Paradise. “Lindsey was on me in seconds.” Dale confirmed. As more people gathered to help, someone grabbed an AED from the wall of the gymnasium. They attached the defibrillator to Dale’s chest and checked to see if it registered a pulse. The voice prompt announced that it was a shockable rhythm.

Dale Wakasugi, St Paul, MN – 49 at time of event (2007)

It all started in Seattle sometime in 1995. Dale was a victim of his heredity, and not a traditional Japanese one. Working in the pharmaceutical industry he was only 36 years old, and yet he suffered a heart attack. Technically known as an MI (Myocardial Infarction) it was caused by a blockage of his LAD (Left Anterior Descending artery). He had been a very active, non-drinker, non-smoker who played college baseball. The blockage wasn’t severe enough to warrant a stent, so diet and exercise were prescribed. Dale moved to Minnesota for his job and regularly visited his cardiologist, undergoing annual stress tests which he passed every time.