9th Hole Guardian Angels recognized by EMS Crisis Action Group

If not for the quick action of the '9th Hole Guardian Angels', we may not have been able to share this story.

On Sept. 23, Calgarian Andy Kirby suddenly dropped to the ground on the 9th green of the Cochrane Golf Club after suffering a heart attack. At one point, he was clinically dead. For six guardian angels, converging from different directions, that answer wasn't acceptable.

Last night, the Cochrane EMS Crisis Citizens Action Group brought them together to tell the tale and recognize their swift and heroic actions. Certificates were presented to Jayman and Ricki Matlo, Cam Macdonald, Matt Belanger, Lorne Butt, and Lorie Campbell, who was unable to attend.

"I just can't believe how above and beyond the call of duties these people went," he says. "It was a generous thing to do, and, as the mayor said, these days you don't hear good stories like this as much as we should."

You wouldn't know Andy is 75. He's active, doesn't smoke or drink, had no history of heart trouble, and says he thought he had all the boxes checked.

"I didn't have any idea that I had any kind of heart problem," he says. "As it turned out, it was a blessing in disguise."

Long-time friends and fellow golfers Pat and Marion Stewart said Andy's heart attack came out of nowhere. Pat recalls how only minutes before Andy shot a perfect 200-yard drive down the middle of the 9th fairway.

As fortune would have, around the time Andy dropped, Jayman Matlo was opening the blinds of their Riverview home and spotted a man down on the golf course.

He alerted his wife Ricki, who immediately dashed outside, jumped their back fence, and ran to the green. A former lifeguard and swimming instructor, she quickly assessed the situation and began performing CPR. She was joined by Lorie Campbell, who also jumped her fence to assist after being alerted to the emergency by her mother.

Meanwhile, Jayman recruited the assistance of Cam Macdonald, a firefighter. Upon arriving at the scene, he assisted in performing CPR, sent word for the course's automated external defibrillator (AED), and provided 911 updates while they awaited the arrival of an ambulance.

Lorne Butt and Matt Belanger, both of the golf club, tag-teamed to get the AED delivered. Lorne says Matt ran like a gazelle to reach the green in no time, while Lorne stopped the play on the course. Also a full-time lifeguard at the SLS Family Sports Centre, Matt says upon arriving at the green, he checked for breathing before using the AED.

They stayed on the scene until the ambulance arrived, about 20 minutes after Andy dropped.

Being able to save Andy's life was a stirring and uplifting experience for all involved. All were modest about their roles because only one thing matters: Andy lived.

"It's just a great feeling to know he had a second chance at life, and that he gets to see his grandkids, kids, and his wife again," says Jayman. "Just being able to give that to somebody and to be able to respond and give them that opportunity is priceless."

As a firefighter, Cam says he often responds to cardiac arrest calls but seldom hears what happens afterward.

"This is quite a unique experience for me to not only be in touch with Andy's family but to find out the result," he says. "They came by around Christmas to thank us, and that was very nice. It's just been a feel-good story."

Matt says, "Anybody with the training I'm sure would have responded the same," says Matt, "but it was pretty cool to help."

To Stephanie, Andy's daughter, the actions of the strangers have restored her faith in humanity.

"Truly, there are no words to even come close to how grateful we are to them and how they restored my faith in humanity. Even with COVID, they didn't bat an eye. No mask, no nothing, they gave him mouth-to-mouth. Ricki's got three small children, Lorie was pregnant, and they did full-on CPR, mouth-to-mouth with no second thought, only that they were going to save him. How do you put that into words? I just can't."

Andy says he doesn't have any memory of golfing that day. He only recalls waking up with a sore face. It was thanks to Marion, who slapped him a few times to see if he had fainted when he dropped to the ground.

"You have to have good friends like that to give you a good slap when you need one," says Andy with tongue-in-cheek.

Wit and all, Andy is on the road to recovery after receiving a quadruple bypass. He hasn't ruled out the possibility of returning to Cochrane this summer with his golfing gang to shoot a round on their favourite course.