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TEACH SAVES BOY, 5, FROM CHOKING
by Veronica Van Dress—Repository Education Writer

Canton – November 18, 2004 – Eric Putterman says he doesn’t eat Fruit Roll-Ups any more.

Not since the chewy, fruity treat became lodged in his throat during kindergarten snack time at Hope Academy on Garfield Avenue SW. Good thing for Eric, his teacher knew the Heimlich maneuver.

“She saved his life,” said a grateful Anne Putterman, Eric’s mom.

Putterman was still emotional two weeks after her son nearly choked. The boy’s teacher, Tiffany Smith, put her arms around Eric from behind and gave three thrusts to his solar plexus to dislodge the food. Eric will tell you, it didn’t come out.

“It went down my throat.”

And that’s about all he would say, not wanting to relive the traumatic event.

“He didn’t want to go to school the next day,” said Putterman. “But it’s like getting right back on that horse. I had to push him in the classroom.”

The day started out like any other for Smith, who has been teaching kindergarten students for two years. She learned the Heimlich maneuver in cardiopulmonary resuscitation classes about five years ago, but never thought she’d have to use it. Hope Academy, a charter school run by White Hat Management of Akron, also offers emergency training to staff, said Smith.

While opening the fruit snack for another student on Nov. 4, Smith felt a tug on her shirt. Eric, like many of his classmates, had rolled his snack into a ball and put it into his mouth. It became stuck in his throat, and he tried to tell his teacher he couldn’t breathe.

“I looked down and saw his face was red and his mouth was open. When I looked at his eyes I saw how scared he was,” she said.

Smith called for help and, automatically, gave him the Heimlich two times. The third time did the trick.

“It was like a reflex action,” she said. “I heard a gurgling sound and he started coughing and crying. He said, ‘I want my mommy.’ ”

Eric’s mom rushed to the school carrying guilt. She had punished Eric that morning for bad language.

“I thought, ‘Oh my God, you saved my kid after I had just spanked him.’ ”

Putterman said she hugged a sobbing Smith, who kept her cool until the danger was over.

“I was so proud of the rest of the class,” said Smith. “They were so quiet and well-behaved through it all. They knew what was going on.”

You can reach Repository writer Veronica Van Dress at (330) 580-8329 or e-mail: veronica.vandress@cantonrep.com

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