{"id":13658,"date":"2016-01-26T18:57:38","date_gmt":"2016-01-26T18:57:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/georgiaarsoncontrol.org\/?p=13658"},"modified":"2016-01-26T18:57:38","modified_gmt":"2016-01-26T18:57:38","slug":"dalton-ga-an-off-duty-firefighter-saves-a-childs-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/georgiaarsoncontrol.org\/?p=13658","title":{"rendered":"Dalton, Ga.- An Off Duty Firefighter Saves a Child’s Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mark is a longtime family friend and a firefighter for the City of Dalton, but he was off the clock recently when a frightening emergency unfolded inside a school gymnasium.<\/p>\n

Kristina says, \u201cWe were at our daughters\u2019 ballgames in Calhoun, and my son was eating pickles, and we thought that he was swallowing them and he wasn\u2019t. He started choking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mark, who had been cheering on the game, quickly sprung from the stands to help his family friends and to rescue little Wyatt.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did everything I thought I could do and before I knew it Mark had him swept up and saved his life, \u201cKristina tells me tearfully.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just makes me so emotional thinking about it, but, we are very thankful that we get to do this for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

She and I count out $500 and head up the road and to the Dalton fire hall.<\/p>\n

Mark\u2019s shift has just ended as we make our way inside.<\/p>\n

Kristina tells Mark, \u201cI wanted to come talk to you about something.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d he replies as he looks around the room and sees colleagues and loved ones who\u2019ve gathered.<\/p>\n

She holds her son closely as she says to Mark, \u201cI\u2019m going to try to do it without crying. The other day when you saved Wyatt\u2019s life\u2026 words cannot express what you\u2019ve done for us and we want to say thank you so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kristina hands Mark five crisp $100 bills. \u201cOn behalf of McMahan Law Firm<\/a> and NewsChannel 9 we\u2019d like to Pay it Forward to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you. Love you,\u201d Mark says as he hugs Kristina and Wyatt.<\/p>\n

Marks credits being nearby at that critical moment to a higher power.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just there to do what I could do.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, he says his calm and quick thinking comes from hours of emergency training.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"