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On Tuesday, March 2, the American Red Cross, Greater Carolinas Chapter will award Aly Andrews, Claira Reisner and Kathy Taylor for their efforts in rescuing 13-year-old Ian Shaver at the Park Crossing Recreation Club on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009. Andrews and Reisner, lifeguards at Park Crossing Swim & Racket Club, will receive the Lifesaving Award of Merit for the Professional Responder, which is the highest award the Red Cross gives to a professional rescuer. Taylor will receive the Certificate of Recognition for Extraordinary Personal Action.

Pictured: The Shaver family (Ian on far right) prior to the incident.

It was a slow morning at the Park Crossing Recreation Club on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009. Twenty-three-year-old lifeguard Aly Andrews watched from the chair as 13-year-old Ian Shaver and his friends played in the shallow end of the pool.

Kathy Taylor, who was at the pool with her children, was chatting with Aly when they both noticed Ian’s friend asking, “Ian, what are you doing?” as Ian was floating facedown in the water. Aly noted that Ian acknowledged his friend, but continued floating in the water, coming up for air, and then going back to floating.

“Then I noticed him not come up,” Aly said. She waited, thinking perhaps he was “playing around.” She noted that his body went from an active floating position to a passive floating position. “Then I jumped in the pool. When I got to him, he was unconscious, so I told the other lifeguard, Claira, to call 911,” Aly said.

Aly pulled Ian to the side of the pool, where Kathy pulled him from the water. “Ian wasn’t breathing, but he still had pulse,” Aly recalled. She gave two rescue breaths and Ian vomited, so Aly rolled him onto his side and performed a “finger sweep.”

At that point, Claira, the other lifeguard, had returned on a mobile phone with 911. The operator instructed Aly to continue giving rescue breaths, after which Ian would vomit, Aly would roll him and perform a finger sweep. Ian’s pulse grew stronger, and the 911 operator instructed Aly to perform five chest compressions and give two more breaths.

Ian was transported to Carolinas Medical Center and was put on a ventilator, where he spent 13 days, eight of them in a coma.

“I remember we had to read him his last rites,” said family friend Robert Boyd, tearing up. “Ian is like a son to me.”

After several days in the hospital, Ian was able to return home, and he has made a full recovery.

“The ER doctor said there wasn’t any brain damage because of how quickly Aly acted,” Robert said.

“Everyone did what they needed to do to keep Ian alive,” Ian’s father, Dan Shaver, said. “Everyone – all of us – need to get trained in CPR, because you never know when you’ll need it.”

Aly credits her American Red Cross training and her “wonderful” instructor for the skills she needed to help save Ian’s life that day. Kathy, who possesses some First Aid and CPR skills, has a special-needs child and is familiar with emergency situations such as Ian’s.

“I had my training in May,” Aly said. “And once I got Ian on deck, that training kicked in.”

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation’s blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit http://www.redcrosshelps.org or join our blog at http://redcrosshelps.org/crossblog.