Akron Life April 2023

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Ethan Rutherford

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In an emergency, CPR performed by a family member saved a teen’s life.

Just moments before, Ethan helped his father, Mark, carry the snowblower to the basement. There was a snowstorm raging outside with more than 10 inches of snow. They were going to prepare the snowblower to tackle the driveway when Ethan suddenly dropped to the ground. Now, Erin was watching as Mark desper ately tried to bring Ethan back to life with CPR. “Ethan was a purply-gray,” says Erin. “It was the scari est moment of my life. In my brain, I was saying, He is dying right in front of me. ” Just six months earlier,

Mark had received his CPR certification through Ethan’s Boy Scouts camp. It was a decision that likely saved his son’s life. “When Ethan collapsed, I didn’t think — I just acted,” says Mark. “I am so thankful that I decided to take that class. I knew exactly what to do.” Mark’s voice cracks as he holds back tears. “Every time I pushed into his chest, I said in my head, Come back to me son. Come back to me. ” With the blizzard outside, a snowplow helped an ambu lance reach the Rutherford home. When paramedics

arrived at the scene, the situation was dire. Mark was administering CPR, but Ethan had no pulse and was not breathing. Paramedics took over CPR and immedi ately deployed the automated external defibrillator. Ethan was defibrillated five times before he was revived. Those are moments that Erin will never forget. “The paramedics asked for us to clear the room, so I went to the kitchen, and I was praying, Please help my son. Help my son, ” Erin says. “I heard them carrying Ethan up the steps and one of the paramedics made eye contact

F or Erin like an eternity as she waited on the phone with the 911 operator. Her 14-year-old son, Ethan, had just collapsed on the basement floor in sudden cardiac arrest. Rutherford, it seemed

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akronlife.com | APRIL 2023