How the Memory of One Little Girl Has Made a Difference

by Bill Hornung

From all outside appearances, Kendra Blaylock was a happy and healthy seven-year-old who loved to act silly with her parents and flash her angelic smile.

Little did anyone know in July 2001 that the brown-haired grade-schooler would soon be at the center of a campaign to make one California school district a national model on how to prepare for school medical emergencies.

Kendra was playing with a friend while on vacation along the Colorado River that month when her heart stopped beating. Her father, who is a fire captain for the Carlsbad Fire Department, outside of San Diego, immediately began CPR. But the effort was not enough to save her before an ambulance could reach the family 20 minutes later with sophisticated emergency gear.

Unfortunately, Kendra's case is not an isolated one. Each year, 5,000 to 7,000 school-aged children die from undiagnosed heart problems. Yet, many of the deaths could be avoided if automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, were nearby. Doctors say victims of cardiac arrest have nearly a 90 percent chance of survival if an appropriate electrical shock is applied quickly.

Fast response is a reality now with AEDs, a new generation of portable devices that diagnose a victim's heart rate and apply a shock to defibrillate the heart. The devices are simple to operate and, at $2,500 each, cost a fraction of defibrillators found in hospitals.

"Kendra was our entire world," said Kim Blaylock, her father. "You never believe something like this can happen to your daughter or son, but it can." Blaylock believes his daughter would be alive today if an AED had been accessible.

Blaylock and his wife, Michele, were devastated by the loss of their only child. But they also believed they needed to turn Kendra's passing into something positive to remember the grace and goodness she brought to all those she met.

The Blaylocks began working with Project Heartbeat, a San Diego-based organization that works with businesses and governments to promote the installation of AEDs. Project Heartbeat provided extensive research and consulting to soothe concerns the Carlsbad school district might have about installing AEDs. The district's Board of Trustees unanimously voted to support the AED program, but had no cash to help with the effort.

Michele and Kim Blaylock

Undeterred, the Blaylocks organized representatives from each school PTA to champion the "Heart To Heart" campaign. In less than a year, nearly $40,000 was raised to purchase AEDs for each of Carlsbad's 11 school campuses. Beginning this fall, teachers and staff throughout the district will complete the four-hour AED training course.

"Although we cannot bring Kendra back, through her memory we will campaign to help save the lives of others by educating the public about sudden cardiac arrest in children and the importance of AEDs in schools and public buildings," Michele said. "We hope in the future to see AEDs in all schools. We now call Kendra our 'School Safe Angel' because without her this would have not been possible."

Carlsbad joins a rare group of schools to install AEDs districtwide. However, the grassroots movement to make AEDs standard devices in schools is growing fast in New York, Pennsylvania, Washington, Ohio and Wisconsin.

"The outpouring of support has been truly amazing," Blaylock said. "We are blessed to have a community that cares so much about the welfare of our children. The effort will be worth it if we only save the life of one child, parent or school staff member."

And Kendra's spirit has been involved all along the way, Blaylock said, including the day of a recent fund-raising outdoor fair and auction.

It was raining hard in Carlsbad early that morning, but it stopped an hour before the fair was to open. More than $16,000 was raised in six hours. Kendra must have been smiling.