Gavin Kenney, a nine-year-old boy from Enos was honored at the Enos Volunteer Department’s monthly meeting on May 4, 2021. He is a student at Kingston Elementary in Mrs. Willis’s third grade class. His interests include basketball and baseball. He can now add being a first responder to his list of accomplishments.
When asked to relate his story, he looked to his mom, Lori Kenney, for help. Lori and Gavin were at home this past February, while she was recovering from neck fusion surgery and was experiencing problems swallowing. She suffers from seizures as well. Due to her medical issues, she has instructed Gavin on what to do in case of an emergency, she said.
“I am a single mom and we have had conversations about what to do in case of an emergency,” she noted. In this particular situation, it was chocking that caused her to be in distress. Her doctor had advised that if this happened, to use pudding to help clear the obstruction. Lori had passed this advice on to Gavin.
Seeing that his mom was in trouble, Gavin tried the pudding but to no avail. Then, Gavin switched to the Heimlich method of clearing her throat. Lori, who was still conscious, said that Gavin told her “I’m not strong enough.” At this point, he did what any third grader would do in this situation, he called 911.
The call went out to the Enos Fire Chief Joshua Gillette and his crew. Help arrived in a matter of minutes and the Heimlich was administered again. Thankfully, this time, it was successful. Where does a third grader get this skill? “I think I saw it on a video” he said. Lori shook her head and added “probably youtube”.
A lot of things had to happen just right for this story to have a good ending. Chief Gillette said he was astounded at the boy’s ability to stay calm through the hectic situation.
“We were all amazed at how calm he was throughout the entire ordeal,” Gillette said. “Through each step he used trying to help his mom he kept his head; he was waiting for us waving from the door when we arrived.” As a first responder, Gillette and his department were aware of the health problems of Lori Kenney. Their speed in answering the call most certainly helped to bring this to a happy conclusion.
“Gavin is my hero everyday” Lori said. “I hope everyone appreciates our first responders and volunteer fire fighters. I know we do.”
Chief Gillette and the entire Enos Vol. Fire Department brought Gavin and Lori to the festivities by way of the fire truck. And they will give him a ride home as well. He is now the proud owner of his very own fire helmet, a patch for his jacket, and a nice plaque to remember the occasion. It was a Job well done for Gavin Kenney and the Enos Fire Department.