AFSCME Local 3566 Members Honored For Saving A Life

When an emergency strikes in a public park, help may be only minutes, or even seconds away. For Mercer County Park Rangers Ryan Shaw and Amy Jones, the training and preparation they had put in over the years made all the difference and helped save a man’s life.

Both members of AFSCME Local 3566 (AFSCME New Jersey Council 63), Shaw and Jones were recently recognized by Hamilton Elks Lodge #2262 for their actions on an early November morning. While enroute to an alarm call at a Mercer County Park facility, radio traffic alerted them to a cardiac-related emergency at another facility in the park.

"Although this was my first CPR response call, I believe that I was fully prepared to take action due to my realistic training of such scenarios with Ryan and the other Rangers," said Jones. 

While Jones set up the area to allow quick access to other first responder and getting the necessary equipment from their car, Shaw was directed to a man who was not breathing. Staff had already used an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) which, coincidentally, the two had serviced only weeks earlier.

Shaw immediately began CPR while communicating the situation over the radio and directing additional assistance to the scene. Jones quickly joined him and began setting up oxygen.

"It was absolutely a team effort," Shaw said, pointing to the facility staff who recognized the emergency and knew what to do, the Park Rangers who responded, and the emergency response partners who arrived afterward.

They continued CPR, administered oxygen and used the AED until EMS arrived after roughly 10 minutes and took over the scene. In total, the patient had gone roughly 30 minutes without breathing independently.

After approximately 10 minutes, EMS arrived and took over the scene. In total, the patient had gone roughly 30 minutes without breathing independently.

"I know that teamwork is the driving factor in success during emergencies," Shaw said. "I rarely see composure during emergency situations such as what Amy showed on that CPR call."

The patient eventually began breathing on his own and regained consciousness before being transported to a local hospital.

Jones received the lodge's First Responder of the Year Award, while Shaw was recognized as Distinguished Citizenship Award. Both awards honor their work as first responders. The rescue also earned Shaw and Jones the Mercer County Park Commission's Employee of the Month.

But the most meaningful moment came when they met the person they had helped along with his family at the Employee of the Month ceremony. For Shaw, that is what being a first responder is ultimately about.

"I take great value in helping people on their worst days, and always will," he said. "I try to treat everyone who calls for help as if they were my own family member because they are to someone."

Jones added that she is constantly learning from her fellow Rangers and other departments throughout the park system to better serve the public. 

The incident demonstrates why public safety depends on more than the people responding to an emergency. It requires preparation, training and the resources to put that training into action.