Students at Akron High School were practicing skills Wednesday that may one day save a life.
The American Heart Association was there to host hands-on CPR training. Working with the American Heart Association was Annette Adamczak, whose daughter Emily collapsed and died of cardiac arrest during a soccer practice in 2009.
"We can turn around and make a difference in someone else's life," said Mrs. Adamczak. "We would love to know that a tragedy can be prevented by sending out the word for 400 high school students, and giving them a hands-on learning experience with CPR, they now can turn around and utilize that and hopefully prevent it from happening to someone else."
The American Heart Association, meanwhile, is throwing its support behind a bill in Albany that would require CPR and electronic heart defibrillator training in high schools.
"We're grateful that we have the support of Senator Maziarz in Niagara County," said American Heart Association board member Josh Lawrence. "But we're hoping and a little bit disappointed to see that the rest of our Western New York delegation hasn't really jumped on board yet. We'd like to see support from them, and we think that an activity like this today should help raise awareness."
The bills are co-sponsored and supported mostly by downstate lawmakers.
