Madison, SD - In the spirit of its mission to Build Success Stories for our members and the community, East River FCU recently donated an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) Machine to the Madison Community Center. AED Machines are portable devices that deliver an electric shock through the chest to the heart during cardiac arrest. According to the American Heart Association, when the heart malfunctions and stops beating unexpectedly, it must be "defibrillated quickly because a victim's chance of surviving drops by 7 to 10 percent for every minute a normal heartbeat isn't restored."

"East River FCU was made aware of the need for a second AED machine on the fitness room level of the Community Center," states Penni Groce, East River FCU staff member. "We took action to get it installed as soon as possible. Our hope is that it's never needed, but brings peace-of-mind to the members of our community that use the facility." 

In addition to the donation, East River staff also completed CPR and AED certification during a recent training day this fall.