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player ready...Andrew’s Assist, a Huntley-based nonprofit honoring the life of 22-year-old Andrew Fulcer, is donating an automated external defibrillator to The Depot in downtown East Dundee.
Andrew Fulcer died of sudden cardiac arrest on May 19, 2022, his mother, Rebecca Fulcer, said at this week’s East Dundee Village Board meeting, where the donation was announced.
“He was 22, vibrant, intelligent and kind,” Fulcer said of her son. “He just graduated from Illinois State (University), had a great job lined up and was prepared to propose. Needless to say, we were completely blindsided by his passing and miss him every day.”
Fulcer and her husband, Mark, founded Andrew’s Assist following their son’s sudden death.
“We exist for one purpose, and that is to protect young lives from sudden cardiac arrest through early prevention, education and life-saving community readiness,” Fulcer said.
The AED, a portable device that can restore a regular heartbeat when someone is in cardiac arrest, will be placed outside on the south side of The Depot, located at 319 N. River St.
The village and the East Dundee and Countryside Fire Protection District are working with the nonprofit and will share the $4,000 cost of a SaveStation AED cabinet in which the device will be stored. Lauderdale Electric, of East Dundee, is donating its time for the installation.
The cabinet is no larger than a fire extinguisher cabinet, Fire Marshall Marc Quattrocchi told the board. It houses the AED equipment, provides a marked location and maintains the equipment so it’s always ready for use, according to marketing material provided by the fire district.
It also has instructional materials for CPR and QR codes for instructions on how to use the AED. When the cabinet door is accessed, local first responders are alerted and can respond. It can take an ambulance up to three minutes to respond to a call for cardiac arrest so every minute counts, Quattrocchi said.
The AED is easy to operate and can be used in conjunction with CPR, he said.
“I really don’t think it gets simpler than this unit. It’s the same set of pads for adults and children. It tells you when to hit the button,” Quattrocchi said.
The Depot has an AED, but is located inside the building and therefore not accessible on a 24-hour basis. Once the new one is installed, the old one will be moved to another location, officials said.
Quattrocchi said it’s a good spot because East Dundee holds so many festivals and a weekly summer farmers market in that area. Additionally, there’s a lot of foot traffic and the Fox River Trail is nearby.
Andrew’s Assist teaches CPR, and has helped have AEDs installed in Huntley and Lake in the Hills.
After Andrew’s death, the family now knows just how common cardiac arrests are, Fulcer said.
“It can affect anyone at any time, even the young,” she said. “It is the second leading cause of death for people 25 and under. One in 300 young people has an undisclosed heart condition.”
Ninety percent of cardiac arrests outside the hospital do not survive, she said. AEDs and CPR can help increase survival rates, as can preventative screenings, she said.
“I respect and am inspired by turning your pain into purpose,” Trustee Tricia Saviano said. “So, I think this is wonderful.”
A ribbon cutting will be held once the AED is installed, Quattrocchi said.
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Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.