During a visit to a Burleson Kroger store on Wednesday, an introduction among coworkers resembled a reunion between long-lost friends when Ray Choate came face to face with Shane Condon, the man who saved his life.
“It feels great. I’m at a loss for words. I can’t thank him enough,” Choate said.
It was Condon’s first day on the job as assistant store manager when chaos broke out in his management.
“I had been here about an hour and a half when we heard a bang. I walked over and saw Ray lying on the ground. I immediately went over, tried to get his attention and tried to get a reaction out of him when I noticed he wasn’t breathing,” Condon said.
And what happened next was that the employees came together on Wednesday to celebrate this at a ceremony.
“I just want to thank you for taking the initiative to do what you did,” said a Kroger supervisor.
For four minutes, Condon performed CPR on a man he had never met before.
He later learned not only that Choate, a field maintenance worker, had survived a cardiac arrhythmia, but also that his doctor attributed it to the chest compressions Condon had performed.
“It was definitely a humbling feeling,” Condon said.
Kroger honored Condon with its All-Safe Angel Award.
It also brought together two men who are now forever linked by quick thinking, courage and kindness.
