Crying 'like a baby' at the Essex-Windsor EMS Survivors Day
CBC News | Posted: June 2, 2018 12:00 AM | Last Updated: June 2, 2018
'They do their job and they do it well. These are one of the most important people in our community'
Jose Guzman remembers going to the gym, getting on the treadmill and starting to run.
What he doesn't remember is the face of the paramedic who hovered above him, restarting his heart and ultimately saving his life after he suffered a heart attack.
Eight months later, he now got to meet that person face-to-face.
"I didn't think I was going to be that emotional but I cried like a baby," said Guzman. "They were the nicest people and I couldn't be more thankful for them."
Guzman was one of the heart attack or trauma survivors at the seventh annual Essex-Windsor EMS Survivors Day.
The event brings together people who lived through a brush with death along with the paramedics and first responders who helped them.
"There is a bond with those survivors and their rescuers," said Essex-Windsor EMS chief Bruce Krauter. "It's not just the paramedics — it's the whole community that saves that life."
Guzman, who sobbed into the shoulder of one of the paramedics at the event, said it has been a life changing experience.
"They do their job and they do it well. These are one of the most important people in our community so we should really appreciate them," he said.