“And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.” — Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5
Thanks to the generosity and foresight of donors who provided the Jewish Community Campus with Automatic External Defibrillators, or AEDs, another life has been saved.
Last month, Jewish Community Center member Les Rosenfeld collapsed and stopped breathing after his weekly racquetball game at The J. {mprestriction ids="1,3"}A fitness staff member quickly retrieved an AED and Detective David Cole, on hire by the Campus from the Overland Park Police Department, used the device on Rosenfeld. Todd Stettner, who had been playing racquetball with Rosenfeld, helped by giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until the paramedics arrived.
“The EMTs as well as doctors at Menorah agreed that had he not gotten the shock from the AED, he might not be alive today,” Stettner said.
“The last thing I remember, I was chatting with Todd after our game,” said Rosenfeld. “The next thing I know, I was waking up in the emergency room.”
Rosenfeld underwent septuple bypass surgery to treat his heart attack and is now on the road to recovery. He is grateful that there was an AED available and that staff knew how to operate it.
“The JCC serves a broad community of all ages and physical abilities. It is great that they are prepared for the unexpected. It certainly helped me.”
“My daughter Rachel and I, as well as our extended family and friends, are so very grateful that the Jewish Community Foundation, the Jewish Community Center, and its benefactors provided the funding for AED machines at the Campus,” says Amy Rosenfeld, Les’ wife. “I also want to thank Todd Stettner, Blair Hawkins and Detective David Cole of the Overland Park Police Department for working together during the emergency.”
In the interest of paying it forward, the Rosenfeld family has made a donation to JCF toward the purchase of a new AED for use in the building, though they hope it won’t need to be used.
“I encourage everyone to find out their family’s health history, visit their physician, have any recommended tests, eat well and exercise,” Amy Rosenfeld said.
AEDs have been helpful during several heath crises on Campus. In 2007 at the Jewish Community Foundation’s annual meeting, Jay Leclere, a member of the Liberty Community Chorus who was performing at the meeting, collapsed on stage. It was the combination of the immediate attention of several medical doctors who were attending the meeting and the far-sightedness of those who donated AED machines to the Campus that saved Leclere’s life.
The Jewish Community Foundation helps donors find and fulfill unique needs in the community. AEDs were donated through the Jewish Community Foundation by the Community Legacy Fund, the Menorah Women’s Foundation, and Mike and Anne Jacobs. The Jewish Community Center has also secured AEDs from donors including the Henning Family Foundation.
Additional AEDs are needed throughout the community to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all. If you are interested in donating an AED or have other ideas to make our community safer, contact Beatrice Fine at the Jewish Community Foundation at or 913-327-4618.{/mprestriction}
