Two girls and MACC dispatcher help save a woman's life
Cameron Probert/ Columbia Basin Herald<br> MACC Director Mary Allen hugs Breanne Millard during an award presentation. Dispatcher Helen Terry, left, mother Janet Millard, center, and sister Ashley Millard watch.
QUINCY — Janet, Ashley and Breanne Millard along with dispatcher Helen Terry gathered during the Multi Agency Communication Center board meeting.
“We have a recognition for a 9-1-1 call that Helen took for Ms. Millard. Her daughters called and they performed CPR … We have a lifesaver certificate for the girls and for Helen,” said MACC Director Mary Allen.
The incident happened on April 10, after Ashley and her mother, Janet, came back from a walk.
“Both my sister and I were home. It was really ironic because normally we wouldn’t be home on a Friday night,” Ashley said.
When they got home, Ashley sat in the living room, while her mother and Breanne were in the kitchen.
That’s when she heard a thud and her sister started screaming. She ran in and saw her mother lying on the floor. She felt for a pulse, but couldn’t find it. She started trying to perform CPR, even though she didn’t know how, she said.
“I thought she was having a seizure … she started losing color,” Ashley said. “My sister was the one who called 9-1-1.”
While Ashley tried to help her mother, her sister was calling 9-1-1. MACC dispatcher Helen Terry responded to the call.
“It felt like it was so long before they answered,” Breanne said. “My sister started CPR even though she doesn’t know what to do. I told the (woman) on the 9-1-1 phone call all the information.”
Terry gave the girls instructions on how to perform CPR, leading them through the process, while dispatching an ambulance to the residence.
“She told me what to do and I told that to my sister,” Breanne said. “My sister got tired and we had to keep switching. One of our neighbors is an EMT and he heard the call when he was out changing the water and he came over to help.”
When the ambulance arrived, the paramedics spent about 45 minutes stabilizing Millard before transporting her to Quincy Valley Hospital and then Deaconess Medical Center in Spokane.
“They kept telling us to say goodbye … My dad never got to say goodbye to his parents before they died, so he wanted to make sure we got a chance to say goodbye,” Ashley said.
While she was in the hospital, Ashley said she knew everything would be all right, adding she’s really thankful her mom survived.
“We say more I love yous … It’s just you hate leaving her alone and you always throw in the extra, ‘I love you,’” Breanne said.
Ashley said she plans on taking a CPR course when she goes to college next year.
“You think you’ll never have to do it. It happens to people every day … It makes me really thankful for all the little things. It’s made our family a lot closer,” she said.