Heroes Who Helped Saved Cordova High Student's Life Honored

RANCHO CORDOVA (CBS13) — The young victim of a near-death experience was reunited with his rescuers Thursday.

The Folsom Cordova School Board recognized several school staff and first responders who rushed to save a student who collapsed on campus. It was an emotional reunion between the high school student and the people who helped save his life.

"I died two times and came back to life, that's crazy," Cordova High sophomore Sunn Carson said.

Carson was in class at Cordova High School last month when he suddenly collapsed. He was not breathing and did not have a pulse.

"He was unresponsive, so I really didn't know what to expect," said Tracey Jacobs, a Rancho Cordova Police School Resource Officer.

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A school nurse and campus police officer were among the first to help, starting CPR and using an automatic defibrillator.

"I did about eight cycles of compression," Blaine Engberg, school nurse, said.

Paramedics continued shocking his heart on the way to the hospital.

"It did not look good at all, by all intents and purposes he was dead on arrival," paramedic Danielle Blaschke said.

But after several medical procedures, he beat the odds and survived.

"I'm blessed to have my son standing here breathing," his mother Winter Jenkins said.

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Jenkins said there was never any sign her son was sick, and she's grateful for those who rushed to save his life.

"Thank you very much, because if it wasn't for them my son wouldn't be here," Jenkins said.

Doctors diagnosed him with a heart defect that is now being repaired. He's now back at school and carries a small defibrillator wherever he goes.

"I'm breathing, still alive," Carson said.

It's a happy ending for these rescuers who now have a bond with Carson that will last a lifetime.

"Being a part of a team of people that were able to assist him on that day is just almost an overwhelming experience for me," Jacobs said.

Carson says he plans on studying to be a barber when he graduates.