The American Red Cross Recognizes Coral Gables Parents with Lifesaving Awards for Saving Their Son’s Life
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – On Monday, March 14, the Greater Miami & The Keys Chapter of the American Red Cross recognized Jorge Galbis and Maria Daniela Castro-Galbis with Lifesaving Awards for using lifesaving skills to save their son’s life.
Emergencies can happen at any time: in the grocery store, at a family gathering, at the community pool, or even at your own home or office. But regardless of when and where they occur, emergency situations usually have one thing in common: a crowd of people standing around, watching someone in distress—wondering who should act and trying to remember what to do.
On August 25, 2021, Jorge and Daniela’s 14-year-old son was studying in his bedroom when he began feeling strangely unwell. He came out to the living room to see his parents and collapsed on the couch. Reacting quickly, Daniela called 911 and Jorge immediately checked his son’s pulse. Finding none, he moved his son to the floor and began performing CPR and rescue breaths. He continued for several minutes until paramedics arrived and took over. The paramedics and their son’s doctors all expressed that if it were not for Jorge’s quick reaction and CPR skills, his son may not have survived.
“We are truly blessed, as we’re one of the few that get to share a success story. Our warrior son is a fighter that’s on the road to recovery due to lots of luck, faith, love and because I took a CPR class many years ago and the training stuck,” said Jorge Galbis. “Otherwise, this would be a completely different story.”
For their incredible act of service and quick actions, Jorge and Daniela have been awarded the American Red Cross Certificate of Extraordinary Personal Action. This award is bestowed upon individuals who step up during a time of emergency to alleviate suffering and save or sustain a life.
The recipients were awarded the Certificate of Extraordinary Personal Action during a ceremony at the family’s home in Coral Gables attended by family and Red Cross staff.
“We are proud to honor Jorge and Daniela for their heroic actions. They are such a special and loving family and faced something no parent is ever ready for; however, with quick thinking, they saved their son’s life,” said Deborah Koch, Executive Director for the Chapter. “We hope others will be inspired to learn the same lifesaving skills. Our community is stronger when we have more people who are trained and ready to act.”
Take a First Aid and CPR Course online to learn what to do in case emergency help is delayed.
A variety of online, blended (online and in-person skills session), and classroom courses are also available. To learn more and get started, visit redcross.org/takeaclass.
Nominate Someone
If you know of a local hero in your community or group of individuals who used Red Cross skills or training to save or sustain a life, you can nominate them at LifesavingAwards.org.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org/southflorida or visit us on Facebook or Twitter at @SFLRedCross.
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