Marion YMCA lifeguards perform lifesaving CPR

MARION — Lifeguards at the Marion YMCA were awarded for their bravery earlier this month after saving a woman’s life by performing CPR.

Carol Camenisch, 77, was at a water aerobics class at the Marion YMCA, 3740 Irish Dr., Marion, on July 14, “having a real good time” when she passed out in the pool.

“The next thing I knew I was in an ambulance,” Camenisch said. “They told me I was turning blue when they got me out of the water — no vitals, no pulse. I was gone.”

Carol had suffered a heart attack.

Class members and lifeguards jumped to action to get Camenisch out of the water and onto the pool deck. YMCA aquatics director and lifeguard Connor Ironside and lifeguard Evalyn James performed CPR on Camenisch until the Marion Fire Department arrived.

“I was dead, and they brought me back to life,” Camenisch said. “I get very emotional because they saved my life.”

“The lifeguards are the ones that brought me back,” she said. “I love my life, and I wasn’t ready to go. I hope they know how much I appreciate what they’ve done for me. I love them. I don’t know them that well, but I love them.”

Her husband, Bob Camenisch, called the lifeguards his wife’s “guardian angels.”

In a post on Facebook, the Marion YMCA also commended water aerobics instructor Gina Kaufman for her assistance in saving Camenisch’s life.

Dale Emerson, Marion YMCA branch director, said Ironside, James and Kaufman are great examples of the “good people” who are taking care of YMCA members.

“They didn’t hesitate,” Emerson said. “They jumped right to action. It was a team effort from participants in the class” and YMCA staff.

“We are proud of our professional team of staff and volunteers as well as grateful for the support of Marion Fire,” the Marion YMCA posted on Facebook. “As a result, we get to see Carol’s smiling face along with her husband Bob. The Marion water exercise community is a special group, and we thank them all for loving each other and the ‘Y’ as deep as they do.”

Ironside and James were recognized for their heroism at a Marion City Council meeting earlier this month.

Camenisch had four broken ribs as a result of the CPR. About 30 percent of patients who receive CPR suffer rib fractures or bone breaks because of the force necessary to perform CPR, according to the American Heart Association.

After more 10 days in the hospital and a month after the incident, Camenisch said she is feeling better. She plans to go back to the water aerobics class as soon as she is able.

“They called me the miracle lady at the hospital,” Carol said. “I just can’t believe that I came back.”

With more than 500,000 cardiac arrests each year, CPR training can be the difference between life and death, according to the American Red Cross.

CPR classes teach skills and confidence necessary to perform the lifesaving procedure when it’s needed most, according to the American Red Cross. Refresher courses are offered to help people who have been trained in CPR retain their skills.

To find a CPR class visit redcross.org.

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