SNOHOMISH — A simple bowl of clam chowder at a church dinner in February turned into a scary experience for Dean Randall, 63.
He started coughing and couldn’t stop. Feeling self-conscious, he went into the hallway.
Lisa Tuengel, 57, had finished dinner early to help with cleanup in the kitchen. She was headed back to the parish hall to grab a cookie when she saw Randall clutching his throat with both hands. He was choking.
She’s a longtime physical education teacher at Machias Elementary. The Snohomish fire department provides training to school district staff on first aid, including the Heimlich maneuver.
Tuengel got behind Randall, wrapped her arms around his abdomen and applied pressure, while also yelling for someone to call 911. Randall started breathing again, but he was slumped over and still making choking sounds. His memory is fuzzy, but he remembers Tuengel ordering him to get on the floor. She performed the Heimlich maneuver two or three more times.
When the medics arrived, Randall’s vital signs were good.
In April, the Snohomish fire district awarded Tuengel a certificate of meritorious service. The commendation said, “Her quick action saved the patient’s life.”
For about a decade, the fire district has provided first-aid training in the schools, with a goal to “make our community a little more protected,” Fire Chief Ron Simmons said.
Randall and Tuengel each have attended Zion Lutheran since the 1980s. The church next spring will celebrate its 125th anniversary.
Randall is retired from Verizon. He serves on the City Council and as church president. Tuengel worked as an American Red Cross-certified lifeguard in high school and college. Her children always jokingly called her the “Rescue Aid Society,” after the Disney mouse heroes from “The Rescuers,” a reference to her tendency to rush in to help.
Randall’s throat was sore for a few days, but he felt well enough to attend the service that followed the soup dinner during Lent.
“I just sat pretty quietly, but I was fine,” he said.
He looked at the chowder and determined the likely culprit was a bay leaf.
Bay leaves, which can have sharp edges, are supposed to be kept whole during cooking and tossed before serving.
All these months later, Tuengel credits her success that night to the fire district as well as her faith.
“I just thank God,” she said. “He helped bring to mind the training I had received.”
When Randall got home, his wife, Rosemary, went straight for the cupboard.
A tiny bottle of bay leaves, something he didn’t even know they had, landed in the trash.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com
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