‘Thank you': First responders who saved man at Grand Rapids Marathon honored
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A man who suffered a heart attack during the Grand Rapids Marathon last year watched Wednesday as the people who helped save his life were honored.
'You guys do this on a daily basis, and it means so much to me,' Tim Ruff said.
Ruff, who had no history of heart trouble, collapsed while running the half-marathon in October. A doctor and nurse who happened to be running behind him started CPR. The Life EMS ambulance crew that arrived moments later said the fast response was crucial.
'The nurse being right behind Tim starting CPR immediately, doing very good hard fast compressions, and the fact that we were right around the corner could not have given us a better outcome,' Megan Daniels, a paramedic, said.
'A police officer was also coming up and they had an AED in their hands, so we got their AED to use and then I was working on getting ready to get some oxygen going,' James Hadley, an EMT, said.
'Know CPR': Post heart-attack, GR Marathon runner shares his story
The ambulance crew was honored at the Heart Savers Luncheon in celebration of National Heart Month. Ruff spoke at the event.
'I don't remember the day really as well as everybody else did, and so some of that just is great to see faces, hear their story, hear what they saw,' he said. 'And then also just see everybody and see what they do on a daily basis.'
A doctor who was part of the emergency response team for the marathon praised those who rushed to aid Ruff.
'Seconds are life. And so the more quickly you can get to somebody and assess what the problem is and make sure someone is doing CPR, getting the blood flowing, getting an AED on it as soon as possible (the better),' Dr. Ed Kornoelje, medical director for sports medicine at University of Michigan Health-West, said.
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Life EMS founder and President Mark Meijer presented the awards at the luncheon. He said awareness and having an emergency plan in place are crucial.
'We all kind of take it for granted. We get complacent because, gosh, we brought this AED, it's been in a cabinet on the wall and nobody has opened up that cabinet in six years,' Meijer said.
Ruff said having the tools and trained staff nearby gave him a new chance on life.
'These are people that do this day in and day out, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you,' Ruff said.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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