i bolded the part i really liked
Date published: 5/13/2010
BY JONAS BEALS
It took 20 seconds and six hard Heimlich maneuvers for Storm Rundman to save his teacher's life.
Moments earlier, as Rundman and his fellow students took a test, Stafford Senior High School Spanish teacher Myriam Lorenzo sat at her desk to eat lunch. She took a bite of a chicken sandwich and something stuck in her throat.
"It was a hard moment to describe," she said. "I knew I was in trouble. I thought I had to get out of the classroom."
Rundman, a 17-year-old junior, noticed something was wrong.
"I saw him coming, but I don't remember what happened," Lorenzo said. "I think I was losing consciousness. I heard voices from very far away."
He wasn't the only student to notice that their teacher was in distress last Monday.
"Everyone was freaking out," Rundman said. "She was legitimately choking."
Rundman is an Eagle Scout, and his years of emergency training took over. He said he didn't even have to think about it: It was an automatic response.
He was surprised at how hard he had to squeeze. After three attempts to force the obstruction from his teacher's windpipe, Rundman stopped to check Lorenzo's condition. She was still not breathing. Her fingernails were turning blue. But Rundman knew he was doing the right thing and kept at it until he forced out a tiny piece of bread.
"It was so good to finally be able to breathe," Lorenzo said.
It took almost two days before she could bring herself to eat again. She had a few bruises and is still a little sore, but she brushed off the pain as a minor inconvenience.
She also did not think it was fair to continue the test after such a traumatic interruption, so she gave the entire class a perfect score.
But Lorenzo also said it would have little bearing on their final grades, adding that each student still has to earn a good grade, even Rundman.
"He saved my life," she said. "He's a wonderful young man."
On top of being prepared per the Boy Scout motto, Rundman also is being humble about what happened. He believes any other student would have done the same thing.
He said there are other Scouts in his Spanish 4 class. And at least one student is training to become an Emergency Medical Technician.
But because of his quick thinking in an emergency, Rundman is being recommended for the heroism award--an honor given to a Scout who saves, or attempts to save, a life.
A national court of honor determines if the effort is worthy of the award in a process that could take months. Only 3,078 Scouts have received that honor since 1923.
Lorenzo will enthusiastically support the recommendation for Rundman.
"You always think you're the one to take care of your students," Lorenzo said. "I never thought it would be the other way around."
Jonas Beals: 540/368-5036
Email: jbeals@freelancestar.com
