CPR Training

It may surprise some to learn that Pennsylvania is one of the few states in the entire country that does not mandate CPR training for high school students. Recognizing the benefit of having high school students trained in this life saving technique, The Gismondi Foundation partnered with the American Heart Association to create an endowment that would purchase the equipment and instructional material for every high school in Fayette County to establish a CPR training course for their students. In 2018, The Foundation attended a “kick off” event which featured students and school officials from the participating school districts: Uniontown, Laurel Highlands, Connellsville, Albert Gallatin, Frazier, and Brownsville.

“High school students are capable of performing CPR if they are properly trained,” says John Gismondi, “and we think it is very worthwhile for them to have the skills that just might save the life of a parent, friend or grandparent if they should go into cardiac arrest.”

As most people know, heart attacks are one of the leading causes of death in the United States, and The Gismondi Foundation is happy to be part of any effort to reduce those numbers through CPR education and training. 

One of the School Directors in attendance for the kick-off event expressed their appreciation,  “These kits are going to be used with every one of our students before they graduate. . . . They are going to come out with the skills to be able to save someone’s life,” says Randy Miller, Curriculum Director at Laurel Highlands School District. 

Dr. Richard Pish, representing the Fayette County Division of the American Heart Association, said, “The beauty of this is that when children learn CPR, they will be able to go out and teach it to others. . . . You absolutely will be able to save lives.”