Joshua Looser, a junior entrepreneurship major in Kent State University's College of Business Administration, received the Red Cross Acts of Courage Award on March 2 after successfully performing the Heimlich maneuver on a woman who was choking last year.
In March 2016, Looser was walking around the building during his shift at Swensons when he noticed someone sitting in a car, and something seemed off.
“Something was weird,” Looser says. “She opened the door slightly and then stopped, so I ran over and asked if she was okay, and she didn’t answer.”
Realizing she was choking, Looser acted quickly by unbuckling the woman’s seatbelt and bending her forward in the seat to perform the Heimlich maneuver until the food was dislodged.
Looser was nominated by his father’s girlfriend for the American Red Cross Acts of Courage Award for saving the woman’s life.
“I felt calm during the whole thing,” Looser says. “It didn’t really hit me until about an hour later, and then I was shaking.”
The Acts of Courage banquet, held on March 2, 2017, honored Looser and six other heroes to celebrate their bold actions and give them an “American Red Cross Hero” award. Looser says the whole event was very heartwarming.
“Don’t be afraid to go out of your way to help somebody,” Looser says. “If you can help someone, whether it be giving the Heimlich or opening the door, just do something nice.”