Check Out Ashley Dwight’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Dwight.

Hi Ashley, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself and your story behind 13BEATS.
I am a wife, a mother of five, and a real estate agent in greater Kansas City. We have a very busy and active household. On August 3, 2022, our lives were forever changed when our perfectly healthy 17-year-old son, Davis, collapsed during a baseball lesson and suffered from Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA). His coaches, Nik & Mike, called 911 and immediately started performing CPR. They worked extremely hard doing chest compressions for nearly 13 minutes. They lost him and brought him back a few times before the first responders arrived with an AED. After 24 long hours not knowing if he was alive in there or brain dead, a week at Children’s Mercy, and many doctor’s appointments later, we are thrilled to report that Davis is completely healthy now and doing fabulous. He experienced no brain damage, and he looks, feels, and acts like nothing happened. Unfortunately, the majority of SCA victims don’t share his story. During our hospital stay we learned that only 10% of victims experiencing SCA outside of the hospital setting survive, and only half of those 10% walk away without any deficits. We are beyond lucky that Davis is a miracle as he is that 5%. 

During our stay in the ICU and the cardiac units, numerous doctors and nurses told us repeatedly that the only reason Davis is alive was the work of Nik and Mike, and the non-stop CPR they performed. We couldn’t help but wonder, what if Davis wasn’t with people who knew how to perform CPR? This fear, as well as the drive to change the horrific SCA survival statistics, led my dear friend, Jillaine vonSeldeneck, and I to create 13BEATS– an organization with the mission to create awareness and facilitate the training of bystander/hands-only CPR and AED use, and to ensure AEDs are accessible throughout our communities. We believe everyone, everywhere, should know this skill so that many more lives can be saved.

How has your 13BEATS journey been so far?
It has been a learning process from day one, as all of this was new to us and not something I ever dreamed I would be doing. We’ve learned so much about our amazing firefighters and first responders; Sudden Cardiac Arrest; CPR; AEDs, and the laws around them. There have been many challenges along the way, but we continue to move forward to help save lives.

Thanks for sharing that. So, could you tell us a bit more about the work of 13BEATS?
Since our start in October 2022, Jillaine and I have poured our hearts and countless hours into establishing this program. We’ve hosted two 13BEATS events where almost 700 people have been trained by Johnson County first responders in bystander CPR and AED use. In addition, we have partnered with Johnson County HeartSafe, and donated over $7,500 to help them get more AEDs into the Kansas City community. 13BEATS has also donated to Ronald McDonald House within Children’s Mercy, as they were a lifeline to my husband and I when Davis was in the ICU.

13BEATS has quickly become a resource for people in KC and surrounding areas when looking for bystander CPR and AED training. After Damar Hamlin collapsed, and then Bronny James, we received many requests for training guidance and I have been able to share our story and stress the importance of CPR training and youth heart screening to several organizations.

13BEATS plans to host two large community training events each year. One will be in February, American Heart Month, and another in October, Sudden Cardiac Arrest Awareness month. This year we are thrilled to partner with the Kansas City Royals to hold an additional event at the September 16 Royals game. Anyone attending the game can arrive early for training behind left field starting at 4:30 PM through the first inning of the game. Planning is underway for our October event, currently scheduled for Oct 21 at Johnson County Community College. Anyone interested can follow our Facebook page, 13BEATS–Saving Lives One Heart at a Time, for updates. It takes just 15 minutes or less to learn bystander CPR and how to use an AED! It is chest compressions only and does not involve breathing into the victim’s mouth. It’s the basic steps you need to know to keep someone’s oxygen flowing until the professional help arrives and it’s very simple to learn.

Have you learned anything else along the way you would like to share?
After extensive testing, the doctors have no idea why our son suffered Sudden Cardiac Arrest. In the past few years, it feels like we’ve seen more of these stories in the news. We have learned that SCA is the #1 killer of student-athletes and feel our mission is as vital as ever. Many times heart issues are discovered, after the incident, which is why we are also advocates of My HeartCheck. They perform youth heart screening in hopes of detecting any heart issues before a tragic incident occurs. Most importantly, we all need to know bystander CPR and how to use an AED. It’s very simple to learn and someday you or I may need to be saved!

Pricing:

• 13BEATS currently provides bystander CPR & AED training free of charge.

Contact Info:

• Facebook: facebook.com/13beatskc
• Email: [email protected]

Image Credits
Andrea Nigh Photography