Daniel Hand Boys' Lax Helps with AED Acquisition

Spurred by talk given last March by head coach Jeff Lombardo and assistant coach George Baldassare, players on Daniel Hand (Madison, CT) High School's boys' lacrosse team were motivated to help their community. The players, after "fund raising, a very generous donation from a lacrosse parent, and much research ... [asked] the lacrosse program to purchase and donate an AED to a Connecticut school that was in need."

Automated external defibrillators are used to treat commotio cordis, an irregular, often fatal cardiac rhythm that can occur when the chest is subject to blunt trauma, such as being struck by a rapidly propelled lacrosse ball. Since the death of Louis Acompora, then a 14-year-old goalie in Northport, NY, efforts by his parents and numerous others have resulted in the widespread acquisition of AEDs, which can now be found much more commonly at athletic venues and other public spaces such as airports.

Captains Paul Alberti, Chad Crisco, and Casey Dowd led the Daniel Hand team's effort. THe players decided "they would like to donate the AED in honor of their former teammate, Jordan Kinscherf ... an avid lacrosse and soccer player ... who tragically lost his life just two years ago."

Read the full story at Madison Patch web site, which also has several AED-related links for those wanting to find more information.

2012-01-02