Butler University associate professor Susan P. Adams suffered a near-fatal heart attack at the Stockbridge Sportsmen's Club last summer. Through quick CPR action by Olivia Netzer, 19, of Housatonic in Great Barrington, Adams received life-saving emergency treatment at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield.
STOCKBRIDGE — Shortly after arriving at the Stockbridge Sportsmen’s Club to help set up a friend’s birthday party, a college professor from Indiana suddenly collapsed on the floor.
Susan P. Adams was in full cardiac arrest with a severe, potentially fatal, heart attack. But luckily, health sciences student Olivia Netzer, 19, was nearby.
Netzer, a lifelong resident of Housatonic who works at the club part time, immediately performed CPR on Adams, saving her life.
“It’s a truly remarkable story,” Adams said of the July incident via email from her office at Butler University, where she is an associate professor and director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the College of Education. “I was sent to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield for open heart surgery, including aortic valve replacement and an aneurysm repair.
“I have been back to work more than two weeks now and am doing well,” Adams said. “I am working hard in cardiac rehab and I remain grateful for the quick action Olivia took.”
Olivia Netzer, 19, of Housatonic village in Great Barrington, accepts a letter of commendation from Stockbridge Fire Chief Vincent Garofoli for using CPR to save the life of a heart attack victim at the Stockbridge Sportsmen's Club last summer. Netzer is a health sciences student at Springfield Technical Community College.
During last week’s Select Board meeting at the Stockbridge Town Offices, Netzer, a 2022 graduate of Monument Mountain Regional High, was honored for heroic, life-saving actions.
Fire Department Chief Vincent Garofoli and Stockbridge Sportsmen’s Club president Rob McDermott presented her with letters of appreciation, a Life Saver Award, and a $2,500 check from the club toward her college education.
Netzer commutes daily to Springfield Technical Community College, attending the two-year radiologic technology program to qualify as a radiology tech, performing diagnostic imaging exams on patients. She also works part-time at Fairview Hospital in Great Barrington as a phlebotomist (a medical professional trained to perform blood draws on children and adults).
On the phone from the Springfield Tech campus on Wednesday, Netzer described the emergency at the Sportsmen’s Club as her first CPR rescue effort after completing the Red Cross course at Fairview last February.
“It was a whirlwind of emotions,” she said. “I just jumped in and started to do it. Afterwards, it was crazy, me and my mom were happy [Adams] was OK, we were scared, anxious, just a whole bunch of emotions going on.”
Olivia Netzer and her mother, Diane Netzer, at the Stockbridge Sportsmen's Club on July 30, shortly after Olivia performed a successful CPR on a visiting college professor who had just suffered a severe heart attack. "It was a whirlwind of emotions for us," Olivia told The Eagle on Wednesday.
At Monument High, Netzer considered a variety of career options in health care. After job-shadowing her aunt in BMC’s radiology department, she said she admired the technicians’ skill.
“I like to help people figure out what’s going on, and help them get better,” Netzer said.
Her mother, Diane Netzer, witnessed the emergency.
“Olivia knew what to do, and I was on the phone with 911,” she said. “It was pretty amazing to see her jump into action and just take control. I’m very proud of her.”
Describing her daughter as “very shy,” Diane Netzer said “at this point, she doesn’t consider it that big of a deal. She’s 19 and it will hit her when she’s older, it’ll be like ‘Wow, I really did something great.’”
Olivia Netzer, 19, received a Life Saver Award and a $2,500 check toward her education from Stockbridge Sportsmen's Club President Rob McDermott. Netzer used CPR to save the life of a heart attack victim at the club last summer. She is a health sciences student at Springfield Technical Community College.
At the Stockbridge ceremony, Garofoli told Olivia: “Due to your actions, going above and beyond to perform CPR, Susan Adams is alive today and able to continue living the life she desires. Your selfless actions that day in the service of a stranger were nothing short of amazing and inspirational to us all. We wish you a happy and rewarding career in the health services.”
Netzer received a standing ovation at the packed meeting room. McDermott expressed amazement that “someone 19 years old has that kind of composure and courage to do something like that. The rest of us just stand around and watch, and she went right into action.”
In a letter read at the meeting, Adams thanked Netzer “for being the sort of person who jumps into action, who takes the initiative and who does what needs to be done instead of assuming that someone else will do it. Although we don’t know each other, our lives will be forever linked by our story and by the amazing results of your CPR skills. Because you got my heart beating and my lungs working again, I was able to have surgery to repair a condition I didn’t even know I had.”
Adams wrote that she expects to return to her “new normal” in a few months and to experience “robust health again soon.”
She also praised Netzer “for your willingness to take care of a stranger and do your best during an emergency. We are delighted to know you are preparing for a career in which you will maximize your skills and connect with many people who need your compassion in life’s most difficult moments.”
