‘I’m thankful he was there’: Jefferson dean honored for saving choking student

MONROE — James Abrams didn’t have time to think.

On Jan. 18, the dean of students was in Jefferson High School’s lunchroom with about 100 students when he heard screams. Nedavia Fielder, a 17-year-old junior who’s in a wheelchair, was choking.

“It went dead silent as his aide screamed for help. I didn't really have time to think; it was more of a fight-or-flight instinct,” Abrams said. “I ran over and, with the help of his aide, unbuckled him and performed the Heimlich Maneuver until food was eventually discharged from his throat.”

Nedavia was able to finish the day at school.

“His grandfather was appreciative that someone was able to lift him up out of his chair and support his weight to perform the thrusts,” Abrams said.

Nedavia weighs about 130 pounds.

“I am extremely thankful that he was there,” said James Reinhardt, Nedavia’s grandfather. “I’m very, very grateful to the school. They did a good job.”

Abrams, a 2008 JHS graduate, also is the varsity boys basketball assistant coach. He took a CPR and first aid class offered by the district’s athletic director, Alyssa Eppler

“I had never had to use this before Jan. 18,” Abrams said. “If you can be trained, you definitely should.”Earlier this month, Abrams was presented with an award from the American Red Cross. Staff came from Cleveland, Ohio to give Abrams the Certificate of Extraordinary Personal Action at a school board meeting.

“Always try and be aware of your surroundings” Abrams advised. “In this case, being in tune with my surroundings paid off big time.”

Nedavia

Nedavia Fielder didn’t always use a wheelchair. Despite a heart condition, he once played football and wrestled.

“He was a heart patient from the time he was born. He had an operation to put a conduit from his heart to his lung,” said Reinhardt, 67, of Frenchtown Township. Reinhardt adopted Nedavia in 2009.

Reinhardt always knew the conduit would need replacing.

“From when he was a baby, they told us he’d have to have that replaced two or three times through his life,” Reinhardt said.

Nedavia was 15 in April, 2022, when he had surgery.

“They opened up his chest and the conduit ruptured. He went into cardiac arrest,” Reinhardt said.

Nedavia also suffered a brain injury in the process. He was in the hospital for four months and went home in a wheelchair.

“I do everything for him,” Reinhardt said. “He was a normal kid; he was a hell-raiser before that. Today he would be driving, and I’d be worried about where the heck he’s at right now.”

The brain injury affected Nedavia’s fine motor skills.

“The center in your brain controls fine motor skills. He remembers everything. I say it’s like you’re trapped in your body," Reinhardt said. "One thing he lost was his speech."

At school Nedavia uses a machine called a Tobii DynaVox that responds to eye gazes and input on a touch pad.

“It’s a speech-generation device. It says it out loud,” Reinhardt said.

At home, Nedavia uses his phone’s text-to-speech feature.

Nedavia also must be fed and has difficulty chewing. Tougher-textured foods, like steak and chicken, cause him problems. Reinhardt said Nedavia was eating chicken when he choked at school.

“I trust the group he has at school. Things like that are going to happen, unfortunately. In his condition, something like that is going to happen,” Reinhardt said. “(After the incident) I saw some worry in his eyes. He didn’t say much. I told him, ‘You’ve got to make sure you chew really good.’”

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Nedavia’s grandfather and doctors hope the teen will regain more function. Reinhardt said he’s already come a long way since 2022.

“If you had seen him from where he was to where he is now, it’s night and day,” Reinhardt said. “Nobody knows if function will come back all the way. With brain injuries, you never know. A brain injury is really slow to recover. In the young, (recovery) is more common. It’s happened before.”

Nedavia is talking about a career as a cook.

“That is so dependent on how he progresses,” Reinhardt said. “I told him, ‘You keep trying.’”

— Contact reporter Suzanne Nolan Wisler at swisler@monroenews.com.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: ‘I’m thankful he was there’: Jefferson dean honored for saving choking student