With the theme of “Be a Superhero, Learn to Save a Life,” Health First CPR Day turned 5,000 regular citizens into rescuers to aid a victim until professional help arrives. Held on June 4 at Space Coast Stadium in Viera, Health First made learning CPR easy with a guided class led by the trained Health First staff and volunteers, emergency medical professionals and physicians and mannequins lined on the baseball field. Participants of all ages earned their American Heart Association Friends and Family CPR certificate which also covers the proper use of automated external defibrillators and teaches participants how to help infants during a choking incident. 
Dave Schmitt, supervisor and lead instructor of the Health First Training Center says, “A victims’ chances of survival double when CPR is administered immediately. This event is helping to make our community a safer place to live, play and work. In just one day, we trained an army 5,000 people to react quickly and help a family member, neighbor or stranger during a cardiac emergency.”
The event also featured a free “For Your Heart 5K Run/Walk” to help Health First further its commitment to exercise and wellness for a healthy heart. Other activities included a visit and tours with the First Flight air ambulance helicopter, healthy cooking demos and the Magic Pizza Oven from Pizza Gallery and Grill in Viera, and visits with educational animals from the Brevard Zoo.
“As one of the largest free community CPR trainings in the country, I’m proud to say that Health First has trained more than 13,000 people in our eight years of hosting this life-saving event,” said Paula Just, Chief Human Resources Officer for Health First.
All participants walked away with a free T-shirt, coupons from the Pizza Gallery and a ticket to a Manatees game. However, the biggest prize participants walked away with is the knowledge of how to be a superhero and save a life.