10 year old saves friend from choking

Tomorrow, a New Jersey fourth-grader will be honored for helping save his friend and classmate from choking.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Derek Mihalecsko, 10, of Marlton, will be honored by the Evesham Township School District for using the Heimlich maneuver to save his friend, Gavin Gibson, from choking on a Cheez-It during lunch. Derek said he learned the move "from the movies."

"At first, we all thought it was a joke," Derek explained "But he started to make these weird sounds and then he turned red. I just got up and ran around the table and did the Heimlich maneuver."

Gavin, also 10, said that he was far from joking.

"People were laughing because I goof around a lot, but I was really choking," Gibson said. "He saved my life."

Jennifer Mihalecsko, Derek's mother who is a fourth-grade teacher in the Cherry Hill School District, said that the incident inspired her to talk to her students about what to do in case of an emergency.

"It's important that the upper-elementary schools are exposed to this kind of information so they are prepared," she said.

Said Derek, "I just wanted to help my friend."

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