The Meeting was called to order by President Devin van Holsteijn at 12:02 p.m.

 

Attendees sang ‘Happy Birthday’ and ‘You are My Sunshine’ led by President Devin and accompanied by his ukulele.

 

Visitors: Mike Stein guest of Rtn. Ryan Bell, Kathy Jensen guest of Rtn. Diane Atkins, Gregorio Sanchez guest of Rtn. LaDonna Wicklund, and Kathryn Wittneben guest of Shelly Maharry.   

 

 

President Devin announced attendance on behalf of Nancy Droll. On Aug. 28 we had 173 members, 13 tuned in and 38 attended.

 

Rtn. LaDonna Wickland announced that she still has two sets of ‘I Can Read Books’ that need to be delivered. Please let her know if you can help.

 

Rtn. Ann Bywater announced that a Rotary Social will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 16 at on the Mezzanine Level (upstairs) at Field Day Brewing as part of the Extension Club programming. The ‘meet and greet’ is free to attend and food and drinks available for purchase.  Ann also shared that Iowa City Rotary Clubs in partnership with the I’m Glad You Stayed Project, are sponsoring a training program on Fri. Sept. 26, which strives to educate the public on real-time suicide prevention actions. The program is at 11:30 a.m. at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church.

 

Rtn. Tara Lawson announced that on Sept 20, our club will be participating in a Baby Supply Drive.  She is looking for volunteers to man stations at HyVee to collect supplies.  Please let her know if you are interested.

 

 

Rtn. Jim Merchant introduced our program today about surviving sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and the impact SCA has on family members.  Dr. Merchant is the Campaign Chair of The Rotary-Kerber HeartSafe Community Campaign which aims to increase the survival rate of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) victims by informing, motivating and training laypersons to use cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and by building a network of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in Johnson County. 

 

Dr. Merchant introduced fellow rotary member, Rtn. Diane Atkins. Dr. Atkins, a pediatric cardiologist, is a national leader in resuscitation science and serves as Medical Director of the HeartSafe Community Campaign.  Dr. Atkins gave a brief overview of the Campaign and looks forward to sharing more statistics and details and an upcoming meeting.  She wanted to focus the remainder of our program on two moving survival stories.  Dr. Atkins introduced Kathy Jensen, a mother and her son-in-law, Christian, who that are both cardiac arrest survivors.

 

Christian, who joined the meeting via Zoom, grew up in Iowa City and joined the Iowa City Fire Department as a firefighter in 2010. An avid triathlete, he suffered a sudden cardiac arrest just over a year ago while training for an Ironman race during a routine bike ride. A passerby saw him collapse into a roadside ditch and immediately called 911 but did not know CPR. Fortunately, two additional bystanders stopped and began CPR, with others who had medical training joining soon after. Paramedics ultimately arrived, administered a defibrillator shock at the scene, and transported him to UI Hospitals with a pulse, though still unresponsive. That evening he underwent a cardiac catheterization to remove a blockage, though physicians noted it was not significant enough to fully explain the arrest. The cause remains unclear, and as a result, Christian has not been able to return to full-time firefighting. He recently moved to Urbandale where he serves in a different role with their fire department. Christian emphasized that he is alive today because bystanders with the knowledge and resources to act stepped in to help.

 

Dr. Atkins then introduced Christian's mother-in-law, Kathy, who also survived a cardiac arrest in 1999. Kathy shared that it is still difficult to recount, especially after reliving it through Christian’s experience. Her SCA occurred at home when her daughter heard her fall and found her unresponsive. Kathy’s husband began CPR, but her airway was unknowingly blocked. Fortunately, their son arrived and recognized that no air was moving. He repositioned her head so that CPR could be effective. Within minutes of the paramedics’ arrival, Kathy received a defibrillator shock and regained consciousness. Having just taken a CPR class at school, her son’s awareness of the blocked airway proved instrumental in saving her life. Because CPR was performed so quickly, Kathy avoided traumatic brain injury and was able to return to work within a couple of months and remains healthy today.

 

Dr. Atkins noted that Iowa was the second state in the nation to require CPR training as a condition for high school graduation. Although this mandate was nearly repealed, strong advocacy efforts ensured it remains in place today. Johnson County Ambulance Service Director, Fiona Johnson, joining via Zoom, emphasized that early access to AEDs is a critical factor in survivorship. She reiterated that outcomes are significantly improved when CPR is administered promptly, stressing that doing something is always better than doing nothing. Even a single CPR training can make the difference between life and death. 

 

 

NEXT WEEK: At next week’s meeting, September 11, 2025, we will hear from Devin van Holsteijn and LaDonna Wicklund about Social Good Works and Good Company, and we will get an update on I Can Read.

 

Program: Rtn. Margaret Reese; Attendance: Rtn. Nancy Droll

 

Please forward any newsworthy items and/or photos to Janice Baldes to include in the weekly slide decks emailed to members prior to each meeting and shown just before Rotary meetings at the Club. You can send information to: Rtn. Janice Baldes janicebaldes@gmail.com

For questions related to Club administration, please contact us at secretary@iowacitynoonrotary.org.