I am a huge football fan, which means Super Bowl is a sacred event each year. This year I was lucky enough to spend Super Bowl weekend with 250 of the world’s leading cardiac resuscitation experts.

Ed Lochhead knows the importance of CPR because it saved his wife’s life.
 
In August, the couple was driving from Calgary to Vancouver for a much-anticipated vacation. On a remote stretch of highway in British Columbia, Ed noticed his wife, Janice, was suddenly quiet. He turned to find her unconscious and in cardiac arrest.

Ed frantically chased down a passing truck. The driver immediately called 911 and performed lifesaving CPR.

 

Last August, James Boshart saved a life. It happened unexpectedly while he was out at a garage sale in Clinton, Ontario with his brother. One minute he was focused on finding a diamond in the rough, the next he was performing CPR.

After high school, many graduates head off to college or take a gap year to travel. Jack Bennet, from Halifax, Nova Scotia, dared to do something different. What he accomplished earned him a Canadian Red Cross Young Humanitarian of the year award.

On October 10, 2012, Amanda Todd committed suicide. Unbeknownst to her, it was World Mental Health Day—since 1992 this day has been highlighted to bring awareness of and hope for mental health issues. Yet few Canadians know of this day and the millions who struggle with mental health issues.

Whole Foods grocery stores are a great place to shop if you are focusing on your health. But a team of employees from the Mississauga location took “being healthy” to a whole new level when they saved the life of a co-worker last summer.

Last fall, Brian Andrade and his wife, Chantelle Lavallee, took a first aid training course in preparation for the birth of their baby; and it’s a good thing he paid attention. What Brian couldn’t have known at the time was that a month after taking the training, he’d have to use it to save the life of Chantelle when she collapsed 13 days after delivering their baby. Had it not been for Brian’s immediate response, Chantelle would not have survived.

Since the beginning of the year John Gallin has visited his local Red Cross branch in London, Ontario to donate his pocket change. Inspired during a first aid course, John decided his goal was to visit the branch every week to make his donation. In the past 12 months John has surpassed his goal of $100 and has donated almost $600 with a few weeks left still!