TAMPA, Fla. — This Valentine's Day, a daughter-father duo are grateful to have each other.
It's been two years since Kaitlin Ryan's quick thinking saved her father Steven's life after he went into sudden cardiac arrest. Steven said it was a hot April day in 2020 when he went golfing with Kaitlin.
She said she was doing her normal routine when she turned around and noticed her dad was lying face down on the ground. Kaitlin said she immediately rushed over to feel his pulse but felt nothing. That's when she began performing CPR.
"EMS got there shortly after, and he didn't have a pulse for 12 minutes. They had to use the [Automated External Defibrillator] four times before getting rhythm back," Kaitlin said.
Steven was put into a medically induced coma. He'd wake up three days later on Kaitlin's 16th birthday.
"What a great birthday present that was," Steven said.
As a result of the incident, Kaitlin and Steven founded "The Chip in for Sudden Cardiac Arrest," a golf fundraiser for the American Heart Association and Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation.
Last year, the charity event was able to raise $31,000. There are plans to host another fundraiser this October.