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Mid Hudson Times , Wednesday , March 29 , 2017

PUBLIC AGENDA

MONDAY , MARCH 27

Newburgh City Council meeting , 7 p . m . City Hall , 83 Broadway . Town of Newburgh Workshop meeting , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 1496 Route 300 , Town of Newburgh .

MONDAY , APRIL 3

New Windsor Town Board work session , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 555 Union Ave ., New Windsor .

WEDNESDAY , APRIL 5 New Windsor Town Board , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 555 Union Ave ., New Windsor .

THURSDAY , APRIL 6

Newburgh City Council Work Session , 6 p . m . City Hall , 83 Broadway . Town of Newburgh Planning Board , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 1496 Route 300 , Town of Newburgh .

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The Mid Hudson Times , ( USPS 000-5947 ) is a weekly newspaper published every Wednesday at Newburgh , NY 12550 , with offices at 300 Stony Brook Court , Newburgh , NY . Single copy : $ 1 at newsstand . By mail in Orange , Ulster or Sullivan Counties : $ 40 annually , $ 44 out of county . Periodicals permit at Newburgh , NY . POSTMASTER : Send address changes to Mid Hudson Times , 300 Stony Brook Court , Newburgh , NY 12550

By SHANTAL RILEY sriley @ tcnewspapers . com

Boyd , the senior custodian at Horizons on the Hudson Magnet School , was in the school cafeteria when he noticed something unusual during the lunch break . “ I was sitting on the stairs of the stage , and I noticed food hitting the floor under the table ,” Boyd recalled . “ So , I got up .”

A second-grade student was sitting in a group , which made it hard for Boyd to see his face right away . “ I noticed his head was going up and down and his hand was waiving ,” said Boyd .

“ Anytime a person is choking , their heads go up and down trying to get air . Once I saw that , I ran over and picked him up and brought him over by the stage , away from the kids .”

By then , Boyd said he knew exactly what to do . “ I needed to hurry up and do it ,” he said .

Boyd performed the Heimlich maneuver on the boy . After about two minutes , a small piece of food shot out of the boy ’ s mouth . “ He staggered ,” said Boyd , but he was okay . Then a teacher took the student to a school nurse .

Boyd learned the Heimlich maneuver years ago , while serving in the U . S . Army . “ I had a drill sergeant who said , ‘ You might not need it today , but one day it might come in handy ,’” said Boyd .

Little did he realize how prophetic those words were at the time . “ Heaven forbid , what if I was off that day ?” Boyd wondered aloud .

The Heimlich maneuver requires someone stand behind the person that is choking , make a fist with one hand and place it above the person ’ s navel . Upward thrusts , in the shape of a “ J ,” are then used to dislodge the item stuck in the person ’ s throat .

“ Teachers need to know it ,” Boyd said of the life-saving maneuver . “ What do you do if your own child starts choking ? This is something every adult should know .”

Boyd insists students should be taught to recognize the signs of choking and people should also learn how to perform the Heimlich maneuver on themselves . “ If you ’ re alone , you can use a chair ,” he said . “ You bring your stomach down on the back of the chair with a lot of

Horizons on the Hudson Senior Custodian Tommy Boyd saved this second-grader ’ s life using the Heimlich maneuver .

force and the chair will actually do the Heimlich on you .”

The Newburgh Board of Education recognized Boyd for his heroic action at the BOE Auditorium this month . “ You touched a young scholar ’ s life ,” said Newburgh Superintendent of Schools Roberto Padilla . “ You touched an entire community .”

“ This is not even the first time ,” Padilla added .

Indeed , it is the second time the City of Newburgh native saved a student ’ s life with the Heimlich maneuver . In 2014 , Boyd was a custodian at Gardnertown Fundamental Magnet School when students told him that a boy was choking in the cafeteria . “ He was leaning over his table ,” Boyd remembered . “ He looked to be in distress . His face was pale .”

The third-grader still had food in his mouth . “ I cleared his passage way and picked him up and turned him around and did the Heimlich on him , too ,” Boyd said .

Again , it took about two minutes for the food to dislodge from the boy ’ s throat . Boyd said the experience caused him to be more watchful of the students . “ It opened my eyes to watch kids ,” he said . “ I watch the kids , all through the lunch breaks . We have cafeteria monitors , but I ’ m still in there with them .”

When asked how he felt about being hailed a two-time hero , he was humble . “ It is not me being a hero , it was me doing the right thing to do ,” he said . “ The kids are the heroes because they survived .”

To learn how to recognize the signs of choking and step-by-step instructions on how to perform the Heimlich maneuver , visit the Mayo Clinic website at Mayoclinic . org – type “ choking first aid ” in the search window on the homepage .