BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Heart of the City is a community event in Bakersfield focused on healthy living. The California Cardiovascular Institute is donating an AED to Gameday Sports Academy.

• The facility offers open gyms for several sports: volleyball, basketball, pickleball and more.
• This will be GSA’s first AED device in the facility for emergency use during games and tournaments.
• The presence of an AED on site can prevent a patient from suffering a cardiac arrest while waiting for first responders.

TRANSCRIPT OF THE MISSION:
Basketball, volleyball and pickleball are just some of the activities Gameday Sports Academy offers the community. I’m Eric J Dockery, your Bakersfield reporter. Through a new partnership with the California Cardiovascular Institute, the 4-year-old facility has a machine that can help in an emergency.

The Heart of the City event will be a day of fun…with a variety of activities…food and vendors welcoming everyone who comes through the door.
But from this day on, something else will be watching them.

Winston Crite Jr. said, “We work with the California Cardiovascular Institute and the California Neurology Institute. They were generous enough to donate an AED retardant to our athletes in case of emergency. They also provided CPR training to our coaches who didn’t have one. That was an incredible thing. So we decided to honor that generosity with an event.”

This GSA offers multiple activities simultaneously for all ages. The facility wants to place more emphasis on health and safety.

“I think it’s very important for all ages when you come into a facility like this. There are young children all the way up to adult leagues running around, playing sports and having fun. And can you imagine what happens when something happens or when a parent is watching? When something happens to your heart or your heart health, there’s no warning, it happens at the most unexpected time,” said Terri Agcaoili.

Members of the Sportsplex tell me that the introduction of the AED device is a groundbreaking innovation.

Phillipa Mitchell-Smith says: “We’ve had too many injuries on the football and basketball fields. In areas where people have had heart problems and didn’t know it. But if there’s someone there or a paramedic who can help them, the AED has saved their lives!”

The Heart of the City community event will be held on Saturday, August 17th from 9am to noon. For 23 ABC, I’m Eric J Dockery, your Bakersfield neighborhood reporter.

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