First Responders Club community outreach

The Citadel First Responders Club held a community outreach event on Sept. 9 when the Bulldogs played Campbell University in Johnson Hagood Stadium. In partnership with Berkeley County EMS and Dorchester County EMS, the team trained over 300 members of The Citadel community in hands-only CPR, also known as “compression-only CPR.”  

Cadets Constance Toldo, Kai Rutland, Zoey Ellison, Jillian Ginty and Cheyene Hencely represented the First Responders Club. 

Students also participated in a similar hands-only CPR event on Oct. 7 at the Moncks Corner Pro Rodeo with alumni Michael Shirey ’95, chief of Berkeley County EMS.

Hands-only CPR can double a victim’s chances of surviving cardiac arrest. The club’s community outreach aims to provide the public with the basic skills to feel confident in performing this lifesaving procedure. Many would-be responders cite a lack of technical knowledge for not taking action. Simplifying this procedure to compressions can increase the likelihood that bystanders will act.