Warrenton boy saves father with CPR, encourages others to learn life-saving technique
WARRENTON, Va. (DC News Now) — As thousands of families are getting ready to celebrate a high school graduation, one Virginia father and son are excited for the celebration that they were so close to never sharing.
Rhett Heppler and his father Joe are forever bonded by a moment from Thanksgiving 2023.
Joe, a father of two boys, came downstairs and said he did not feel well. He asked his son to call 911, and then he collapsed face first, eventually lying in a pool of his blood.
When Rhett called 911, he was instructed by the operator to perform CPR, which he did. Joe ended up on life support for two weeks but survived and is home after an arduous recovery.
“I wasn’t panicking, I wasn’t freaking out,” Rhett said. “It was just all the adrenaline. Do what you gotta do.”
Rhett said the doctors told him that immediate CPR was instrumental in saving his father’s life.
“Every second that you don’t have the oxygen flowing to your brain is another second that it’s going to be a much harder recovery, or you may not recover,” he said.
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Rhett’s father Joe, a former law enforcement officer, said he was proud of his son’s actions.
“I can understand how difficult that was to do [CPR] with a stranger,” he said. “I can’t imagine what he was going through having to do it with me.”
Rhett is getting ready to graduate from Kettle Run High School this week, a celebration that his father will be able to attend because of his actions.
“It’s a very special moment and I’m very, very happy that I’m here to see it,” Joe said.
Rhett said his dad is the most important person in his life.
“I’m honored that I could do something for him,” Rhett said. “It doesn’t seem like it’s nearly as much as what he’s done for me. But, you know, I was just doing something for a moment.”
Rhett is encouraging others to learn CPR, saying you never know when or if you may need to perform the life-saving mechanism.
His post-high school path is unknown, but he said the experience at Thanksgiving has encouraged him to put himself in high-pressure situations where he can help people.
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