HERSHEY, Pa. — Members of Penn State Health Life Lion LLC were honored at an Oct. 29 event for their crucial role in a cardiac arrest save that tested Cumberland County’s innovative Avive 4-Minute City initiative, a program designed to improve response times for cardiac emergencies.

In July, Life Lion LLC team members responded to an emergency call for a man experiencing cardiac arrest in Upper Allen Township. Simultaneously, a member of the CARE (Cardiac Arrest Rapid Engagement) Team — a local volunteer trained through the 4-Minute City initiative — was alerted and arrived promptly on the scene. Equipped with an automated external defibrillator (AED) provided by the program, the volunteer delivered a lifesaving shock, marking the first successful AED intervention by a 4-Minute City volunteer in the United States.

Life Lion LLC then took over patient care and transported him to Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center for further treatment.

Cumberland County is now one of only four locations nationwide to implement the Avive 4-Minute City initiative. In partnership with Penn State Health, nearly 300 AEDs have been distributed to trained community volunteers committed to stepping in during cardiac emergencies. This rapid response effort was vividly demonstrated in Upper Allen Township, where the CARE Team’s swift intervention aligned with the initiative’s mission: to engage the community in life-saving actions before EMS teams arrive.

The initiative is a collaborative effort involving the Emergency Health Services Federation, Cumberland County Public Safety, and The Peyton Walker Foundation, supported by Cumberland Goodwill EMS, Life Lion EMS, Lower Allen Township EMS, Penn State Health, UPMC and the UPMC Pinnacle Foundation.