Broken Arrow student helps save father’s life during heart attack
Launch the media gallery 1 playerIt was just three days after Broken Arrow student Braden Bruner celebrated his 15th birthday when he helped save his father’s life during a heart attack.
Around 11:18 p.m. on May 28, Braden heard his mother, Melissa, screaming for help because her husband, Mike, wasn’t breathing. They immediately started CPR while anxiously talking to 911 dispatchers.
“It was in the moment that Braden thought he was losing his dad in his arms,” Melissa said. “When the fire department and paramedics arrived, Braden helped lift his dad from the bed to the floor so the first responders could intubate him and shock his heart twice to get vitals.”
The weeks that followed weren’t easy for the Bruner family. Mike remained in critical condition in the Intensive Care Unit for eight days in a medically induced coma. He was diagnosed with congestive heart failure that required surgery.
“Braden saw something that no teenager should have to see, and it felt as if my heart was being ripped out of my chest,” Melissa said. “We are happy to report that Mike is fully recovering at home, and we aren’t taking a single day for granted. I am so thankful for my son’s strength that night. He is a true hero.”
Broken Arrow Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Janet Dunlop wholeheartedly agrees with Melissa.
“Braden is an incredibly brave young man,” Dr. Dunlop said. “Hearing about his courage during such an unimaginable situation only further proves that BA truly has the best kids in the world. We are so proud he is a Tiger, and we are so thankful his dad Mike is on the mend.”
Braden will be honored at the June 29 Board of Education meeting.