PUEBLO — A Pueblo County School District 70 middle school nurse is being called a hero after saving a parent's life during an assembly.
Pleasant View Middle School student, Macee Toussaint and some of her and some of her classmates were being honored for good grades when her step-dad lost consciousness.
She started choking up taking herself back to that moment two weeks ago. Toussaint said it's hard to imagine what would have happened if the school nurse hasn't been there.
"My hands were like really shaky, they got really numb, I didn't know what was happening," said Toussaint.
The school nurse, Veda Padilla, said within seconds she started CPR.
"It was a relief as soon as he opened his eyes, felt relieved because it was a very scary situation," said Padilla.
She wants her students to know that she's there to help keep them safe.
"I just reassure them, events like this can happen, but it's good that we're prepared," said Padilla. "I always tell them this is their safe place."
Her life-saving efforts were recognized by the school district and other students.
"There was this little kid, I walked in to do a presentation, and he goes, 'oh, look a real-life hero,'" said Padilla.
Padilla said more students are asking how they can get CPR certified. "A lot of our kids live with their grandparents and so if that happened to their grandparents then they would know how to react."
The assembly was rescheduled and Touissant got her award for her 4.0 GPA. She said thanks to the school nurse, her step-dad is okay.
"Having someone in the building that knows how to do [CPR] is really comforting to know," said Toussaint.
D70 officials said all nurses, coaches and bus drivers are required to be CPR certified.
____
Watch KOAA News5 on your time, anytime with our free streaming app available for your Roku, FireTV, AppleTV and Android TV. Just search KOAA News5, download and start watching.
