Remaining SSIPA Tournaments
Roxanne Pierce
The highlight of my Minto US Open trip actually occurred on my flight back home .
The flight out of Fort Myers was delayed .
We arrived in St . Louis 30 minutes late and then sat on the tarmac for another 15 minutes waiting for a gate to open . Grrrrr . I had a really tight connection . Arriving into gate C-12 , I could see my next plane at C-14 still parked . Yea ! I barreled my way to the front , ran up the jetway , and flew over to the next gate and partway down the jetway when I heard a loud voice hollering , “ Lady , LADY , you can ’ t go there . HOLD ON !!!” I exclaimed , “ That ' s my flight !”
She calmly told me she ’ d get me on . I had a stop in Wichita where I thankfully changed from a cramped middle seat to the very front row with tons of leg room . A wheelchair passenger was brought on board with his mother and sat across the aisle . He just didn ’ t look good . A very astute flight attendant , Drew , recognized his distress . Right after takeoff he called for a Spanish speaker and any medical personnel to please pull their “ call ” button . I leaned forward and whispered under my breath that I was a retired paramedic , praying someone more qualified would step forward — a nurse practitioner did . Through the interpreter , the nurse taking vitals , and the flight attendant talking to medical personnel on the ground , the situation appeared to be under control and the captain continued on toward Phoenix .
Halfway through the flight the nurse came back up front and discovered the passenger wasn ’ t breathing and had no pulse . My paramedic instincts and training took over : Grabbing under his arms and with the assistance of Drew getting his legs , we got him down in the aisle . I ripped his shirt off and started compressions ( to the beat of “ Stay , stay , stay , stay , stayin ’ alive ”) while the nurse ventilated through a mask . Defibrillator pads were smacked on , but the machine advised not to shock . That ’ s the case when there is zero activity . The nurse and I continued CPR for 20 minutes until we arrived at our diversion city , Albuquerque , NM , where the fire department paramedics took over . After another 20 minutes of CPR , an IV line , medications and defibrillation , the patient / passenger was carted off to Presbyterian Hospital .
Through some crazy circumstances , I was in the right place at the right time .
End of story ? Nope . Curiosity got the better of me , so I called AFD Station 2 the next day . I learned the passenger had a pulse and good blood pressure when he arrived at the E . R . and had been transferred to the ICU . Whoa , what a feeling !!! To all my fellow pickleballers , save a life !!! Learn CPR , take a course , refresh your skills . You just never know … •
Super Senior International Pickleball Association ( SSIPA )
Go to www . ssipa-pb . org for membership information .
If you ’ re interested in hosting a SSIPA tournament in 2018 , email ssipa . pb @ gmail . com .
Coronado SSIPA : Age 75 Mixed winners Frank & Lola Benneyan , Alice Tym , Bill Smith , Margo Dragoo & John Browing .
Mixed Doubles 65 + winners from the SPA tournament in Surprise : Yoda Friedenberg , Marcha Freso , Yvonne & Jim Hackenberg and Dave Zapatka and Diane Baumgartner .
Remaining SSIPA Tournaments
June 20-22 SSIPA - Lewis & Clark Super Seniors Shootout , Washougal , WA
July 18-20 Denver Pickleball Classic , Denver / Littleton , CO
Aug . 21-23 Billy the Kid SSIPA Shootout , Ruidoso , NM
Sept . 15-17 IFP Bainbridge Cup 2017 , Madrid , Spain
Oct . 23-25 SSIPA – Super Senior World Pickleball Championships , Griffin , GA
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