BUFFALO, NY. (WKBW) — Earlier this week, it was reported that Buffalo Bills athletic trainer Denny Kellington is taking on a new role as Vice President of Player Health & Performance with the Carolina Panthers.
Kellington was one of the members of the Bills athletic training staff who helped save Damar Hamlin's life on January 2, 2023, after Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest on the field in Cincinnati.
"I remember being up all night checking Twitter, checking how he was doing seeing if there were any updates," said Tom Lowe, Community Impact director for the American Heart Association.
“I remember the night clearly watching it on the couch with my husband," said Lynda Marino, 2024 Go Red for Women Class of Survivors recipient. "My husband left the room, he said to me 'I can’t watch this.'"
Hamlin's heartbeat was restored on the field and he was transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center for further testing and treatment. He was cleared to resume full activities in April 2023 and played in his first game during the preseason in August 2023.
Hamlin has since used that experience to stress the importance of life-saving training in CPR.
The events of that night in Cincinnati still feel like they happened just yesterday for Lowe and Marino who are both strong advocates for CPR awareness.
In his role with the American Heart Association Lowe has witnessed how the life-saving measures taken by Kellington, the Bills training staff, and first responders that night have changed the way people view CPR.
“Since Damar joined the Nation of Life Savers after he was revived on that field, CPR confidence has risen," Lowe said. "So the confidence people have in performing CPR when needed has jumped from 33% to 39% in this country. So that’s 17.7 million people that are more confident today than they were a little over two years ago in performing CPR if it’s needed."
For many, that day was a wake-up call.
But for Marino, her wake-up call came in 2015 when she went into cardiac arrest while driving with her daughter who was two years old at the time. The quick actions of strangers who performed CPR hooked her up to an AED defibrillator and called 911, saved her life that day.
“You never know when you’re going to be someone’s hero," Lynda said. "Bill was my hero that day, Denny was Damar’s hero that day. One of many. But you either stand and watch it happen or you get involved. We’re the city of good neighbors, we have the ability to do more.”
So as Kellington settles into his new job with the Panthers he leaves Buffalo a better place than it was when he got here.
Tom: “Simply we appreciate you. We appreciate what you did on the field that day and the message you've shared since.”
Lynda: “Thank you for everything you did for Damar that day. But thank you for being a part of a story that’s going to have a lasting impact.”
Be like Bill, be like Denny, and be a good neighbor; it’s the Buffalo way.
