Lewisville ISD recognizes school nurses who saved two lives on the same day

The Lewisville ISD Board of Trustees recently recognized two district nurses who saved lives on the same day earlier this year.

Early on the morning of Jan. 4, Brenda Gonzalez was in her office at Lakeland Elementary School in Lewisville when she got a call that a fellow staff member was experiencing a cardiac emergency on campus and emergency services were on their way, according to the LISD website. Gonzalez grabbed her GO Bag, a portable bag that contains medical equipment, and raced to her colleague to immediately start performing CPR. Nearby staff members followed her instructions to retrieve the Automatic External Defibrillator (AED). Gonzalez’s quick usage of the AED, along with the CPR she performed, re-started her colleague’s pulse before emergency medical services transported them to a nearby hospital, according to the district.

Later that morning, Mary Ashmore was in her office at Downing Middle School when she was informed that a staff member was experiencing a medical emergency in the cafeteria. Ashmore ran to the patient and began CPR with chest compressions and directed her colleagues to bring her the campus AED. The staff member regained a pulse from the chest compressions, and was swiftly transported to a nearby hospital as well, according to LISD.

“The quick actions of Brenda Gonzalez and Mary Ashmore undoubtedly saved the lives of their colleagues,” the district said.

“We are beyond proud to call these two individuals part of the LISD family,” said Board President Jenny Proznik.

The district celebrated both nurses at February’s board meeting as part of its recognition of Go Red Month, a campaign by the American Heart Association to spread awareness about the importance of heart health.

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