FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (March 15, 2021) – On Tuesday, March 9, the Broward County Chapter of the American Red Cross recognized Christopher Puentes, Jesse Wheeler, Joshua Franco, and Kenneth Soto with Lifesaving Awards for using Red Cross training and skills to save an individual’s life.
On September 9, 2020, Puentes, Wheeler, Franco, and Soto, who are trained in American Red Cross Lifeguarding with CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and First Aid and Administering Emergency Oxygen, helped to save the life of an individual at the YMCA in Hollywood, Fla. A member of the facility had a medical emergency while in the water and the four lifeguards responded. The member was pulled onto a backboard and once out of the water was checked for a pulse or breathing, there was neither. CPR was started immediately by one of the lifeguards and after multiple rounds, oxygen was administered followed by the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED).
The lifeguards continued this until paramedics arrived and took over. The individual survived after being taken to the hospital and has since returned to the YMCA for regular swims in the pool.
Without a doubt, the skills they learned in the American Red Cross Training Services course helped to save this individual’s life.
For their heroic actions, Puentes, Wheeler, Franco, and Soto have been awarded the American Red Cross Certificate of Merit. This is the highest award given by the American Red Cross to an individual or team of individuals who saves or sustains a life by using skills and knowledge learned in an American Red Cross Training Services course. The certificate bears the signature of the President of the United States, who is the honorary chairman of the American Red Cross, and the signature of the chairman of the American Red Cross.
All four gentlemen were awarded the Certificate of Merit during a virtual ceremony among Red Cross staff and board members.
“Christopher Puentes, Jesse Wheeler, Joshua Franco, and Kenneth Soto are true heroes. Because of their quick response and continued effort to administer CPR, oxygen, and the AED, they saved this individual’s life,” said Paula Prendergast, executive director for the Broward County Chapter. “To act quickly and decisively takes the highest level of courage and the Red Cross thanks them for their outstanding response.”
Take a First Aid and CPR Course online to learn what to do in case emergency help is delayed.
A variety of online, blended (online and in-person skills session), and classroom courses are also available. To learn more and get started, visit redcross.org/takeaclass.
Nominate Someone
If you know of a local hero in your community or group of individuals who used Red Cross skills or training to save or sustain a life, you can nominate them at LifesavingAwards.org.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org/southflorida or visit us on Facebook or Twitter at @SFLRedCross.