General
Four years ago, Adam suffered a Sudden Cardiac Arrest which compelled us three soccer moms (Melanie Afromsky, Brenda Buckley, Patricia Johnson) to start Adamsheart. Our foundation's primary mission is to increase the availability of AEDs at all sporting fields. This month, on the four year anniversary of Adam's Sudden Cardiac Arrest, we are excited to announce that the first round of AEDs have been mounted at Heritage Park in Henderson, Nevada. This pilot program is the first step in providing AEDs to all outdoor sporting venues across Nevada. in addition to raising public awareness of Sudden Cardiac Arrest and encouraging youth organization coaches to become CPR & AED trained , we are striving to make Nevada a safer place. Programs like this could not be accomplished without community partners. We would like to thank the City of Henderson Fire Department & The Parks & Recreation Department for partnering with Adamsheart to implement such an important program. Coaches, players, and spectators, please look for more big red hearts with the AEDs inside of them on the bathroom walls when you are at Heritage Park.
Melanie Afromsky
On May 12, 2012, my son, Adam Afromsky, was playing at Bettye Wilson Soccer Complex, in a State of Nevada soccer tournament, for the state championship title. A few minutes into the game, my son fell to the ground. According to his doctor, he was experiencing a sudden cardiac arrest, in essence, he died on the field. By a stroke of luck and my screaming at the top of my lungs, an off duty ER doctor heard the commotion and came running over. He and a nurse began CPR. 911 was called and an ambulance arrived at the field within 5-7 minutes. (I believe that they were having lunch a block away) The paramedics moved quickly shocking my son's heart 2 times with an AED, also known as a defibrillator. Our story has a happy ending. My son had a defibrillator/pacemaker implanted in his chest and takes medication daily, for the rest of his life. He had no brain damage and should make a full recovery.
Update: Adam is in his second year of college at Eastern Oregon University. He is studying Exercise Science with aspirations to become a Physician's Assistant with a focus on cardiology. Adam continues to work hard on the EOU men's soccer team and is loving every minute on the field. Adam remains committed to the continued growth of Adamsheart Foundation's mission of getting AEDs placed in all open-air sporting venues in Nevada. Adam realizes that on May 12, 2012 he was given a second chance on life which has given him the passion to share his story and appreciate everything that life has offered him.
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Parker Johnson - Adam's Teammate
10 minutes into my soccer team’s State Cup semi-final, our 14 year old teammate collapsed and didn’t get up. His mother, our team manager, was running over and thought he was dead. Her scream was the scariest sound I have ever heard. The field medics came and they figured that he was ok because he still was breathing, they thought he was just having a seizure. However, an ER doctor that was at the fields heard the scream, ran over to help out, and then realized that my teammate needed CPR. His heart was in fibrillation, just shaking in his chest. He was having a Sudden Cardiac Arrest. During this entire situation, our team was praying, thinking that one of our closest friends is going to die. For five minutes the doctor did CPR, trying to save our friend. Then, the ambulance came with the AED(automatic external defibrillator) and shocked him trying to bring his heart back to a normal beating pattern. Luckily, our friend was saved but we all still carry the memories with us. Without the doctor that did CPR, and the first responders with the AED, my teammate would have not survived because not enough people knew the signs of Sudden Cardiac Arrest and how to respond to them. Adamsheart is an organization founded by people very close to this situation and will help prevent death from SCA.
Update: Parker Johnson is currently serving a mission for his church in Jakarta, Indonesia. When he returns he will continue his studies at Brigham Young University. He hopes to implement the mission of Adamsheart into youth sports in Provo Utah where he will be attending school. Parker is very excited about the progress that has been made in the past few years with Adamsheart's mission. He is still grateful for the miracles that occurred that day on the soccer field that combined to save his friend and teammate Adam. As he grows older he is more convinced of the need for CPR and AED training in schools and youth sports programs. He has trouble understanding why there is even a debate when something so simple will directly save kids lives.
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Connor Buckley - Adam's Teammate
Five minutes into our State Cup semi-final soccer game, the other team has a free kick, and Adam heads the ball scoring an own goal. We take the ball back to the center and play resumes. The ball is kicked into the corner and Adam slides winning the ball, and the ball is kicked up the field. I turn around and Adam has collapsed and is lying prone down on the grass. The helplessness I felt while Adam was on the grass with no heart beat is indescribable. No one knew what was happening or what to do, except a doctor who was entering the fields to attend his son's soccer game on another field. Immediately the doctor rushed to Adam and began CPR until an ambulance with and AED arrived, and took him to the hospital. If the doctor had not been walking by our field at the time of the incident, Adam may not be alive today. If there was no shock from the AED to start Adam's heart, his heart would have never started beating again.
Update: I am currently a sophomore at the University of Notre Dame studying finance in the Mendoza School of Business. I play club ultimate frisbee and travel to tournaments at schools across the country, where I am able to use the platform to continue spreading awareness about sudden cardiac arrest and the need for accessible AEDs.
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