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Years of teaching kids to memorize their address and phone number paid off for an Iowa City family. A nine year old boy was honored Tuesday with the American Legion Youth Hero Award. Quick thinking during a 9-1-1 call helped save his mother's life.
A.J. Leong is all smiles when he shows off his medal of heroism. A few months ago, his mother went to take a breath on her inhaler, and took in more than medicine. Her daughter's hair tie had gotten inside the inhaler case and lodged in her throat.
"It was kind of scary. I didn't want her to pass out. It was just kind of scary," says A.J.
"He was a little reluctant at first to call, but then I punched in the numbers for him and he took the phone and did a fantastic job telling the dispatcher what needed to be done," says his mother, Donola Morris-Leong.
After a couple minutes of giving herself the heimlich maneuver, Donola got the hair tie out of her throat. A.J.'s calm demeanor on the phone surprised his mother, who says teaching kids to memorize their address and phone number can go a long way.
"I think they understand listen and pay attention to the adult world a lot more than we realize," she says.
A.J. says he'll be ready in case of another emergency.
"I'll probably have more practice, so I'll probably remember how to do it," he says.
A.J.'s mother was able to get that hair tie out of her throat right as paramedics pulled up the driveway.
View video here.
