PHOENIX — Tons of hugs were given at Phoenix Fire Station 52 on Friday.
Debbie Freeman said it was the least she could do for the firefighters who helped save her life after she suffered a cardiac arrest in November.
"Basically, I died," she said.
Freeman and her longtime partner and high school sweetheart Mike Berry went out for date night like they do every Friday. They decided to go to a restaurant at Desert Ridge Marketplace. Freeman said the parking lot was packed so Berry dropped her off at the front door.
She grabbed a seat at the bar and just started reading the menu when she passed out. She would later learn it was from cardiac arrest.
“It came out of nowhere,” Freeman said.
Berry started performing CPR as the restaurant called 911. She said firefighters arrived in minutes and took over.
“I am literally standing here because of this team," she said.
Emergency crews rushed her to the hospital. Two days later Freeman suffered another cardiac arrest. After a week she finally woke up.
“I lost a week but I’d rather lose a week then lose everything else for eternity,” Freeman said.
Freeman said she now has a defibrillator and pacemaker. It's taken some time to get better but she feels stronger each day that passes.
She was later told by doctors that what she experienced is not only rare, but those who do go through it usually don't survive.
The couple gave credit to the firefighters who rushed in to save her life.
“Thank you really isn’t enough," Freeman said. "But it was really important to let them know."
“I just want to thank you guys for allowing us to continue our love story,” Berry said.
As much as this reunion meant for them, it also meant so much for those firefighters.
“More often than not we drop people off at the ER and we never know what happens," Captain Brian Carlisle said. "We don’t know if it’s a good outcome or a bad outcome so to have that follow-up is very rewarding.”
For firefighters Christian Fleming and Dameion Williams, being able to see Freeman and receive the hugs, was a blessing.
“I’m just glad I got to be a small part of a positive outcome,” Fleming said.
“It made us feel like we made a difference,” Williams said.
At the end of the reunion, Freeman encouraged people to learn CPR and clear the way when firefighters and emergency crews are rushing to the scene.
It could help save someone's life.
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