Joe and Jody Schleicher faced every parent’s worst nightmare when their 9-day-old daughter stopped breathing while they were driving along a busy highway.
Miles away from a hospital, the shocked parents were at a red stoplight when mother Jody noticed something was wrong.
“She said, ‘She’s not breathing. She’s not breathing; I need to get her out of the car seat,'” Joe explained.
The frantic parents urgently sought help and fortunately spotted police officer Kristin Mitrisin of Pittsburgh in her patrol car at that exact moment.
Joe started honking to grab her attention and informed her that his baby had stopped breathing.
“He reached out to me, the baby is turning blue in her face and nose. And then he said, ‘please, my baby can’t breathe, help me,'” officer Mitrisin told CBS Local News.
Once Joe and his wife signaled Kristin, the officer took baby Olivia to the gate of her police pickup truck and began the delicate process of administering CPR to a 9-day-old infant.
“It’s very scary to have your child in the back of a truck with a blue-colored face,” Joe recollected.
Another officer arrived to assist, and officer Mitrisin fetched a defibrillator, but fortunately, the baby did not need a shock.
“The baby took a breath, a few seconds later another big breath, and then a few shallow breaths, and then she started to cry. And that was the most beautiful sound to hear,” officer Mitrisin shared.
“I was just thinking, you know, what do we do to get baby Olivia breathing. Mom said her name is Olivia, so I just kept saying ‘come on baby Olivia, we can do this.’ And I just kept resuscitating Olivia.”
With no time to wait for an ambulance, officer Mitrisin hurried the family to the hospital. There, the baby is currently receiving treatment for a heart condition that necessitates surgery.
The heroic officer stated, “I just know that God placed me there at that moment to help that baby.”
Olivia’s thankful parents are now praying for their daughter’s speedy recovery, so she can return home and hopefully arrange a meeting with the officer.
“If the officer would be willing to meet the baby and meet us after she comes out of the hospital, that is something we would definitely be interested in. I feel like she’s just as proud as we are, knowing that she saved the baby,” Joe expressed.
A fundraising campaign has been established to help with the family’s medical expenses.
Thanks to officer Mitrisin, a life was saved that day. Hopefully, Olivia will be able to reunite with her family at home soon.
Join us in honoring this courageous officer by sharing this inspiring story.
