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Friendship family reacts to school bus driver saving their daughter

<i>WKOW via CNN Newsource</i><br/>The family of the child who was saved by their Adams-Friendship school bus driver is speaking out about the experience.
WKOW via CNN Newsource
The family of the child who was saved by their Adams-Friendship school bus driver is speaking out about the experience.

By Lucas Kihmm

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    TOWN OF FRIENDSHIP, Wisconsin (WKOW) — The family of the child who was saved by their Adams-Friendship school bus driver is speaking out about the experience.

On January 10, surveillance video on an Adams-Friendship School District bus captured 9-year-old Cathryn Dornacker choking on her bracelet while on her way home.

The driver, Jamie Smoczyk, stopped the bus and jumped into action by performing the Heimlich Maneuver on Dornacker.

“I remember making a bracelet with the “C” clip, and then we stopped, and I accidentally swallowed it,” Cathryn said. “Then I don’t remember anything and then technically Miss Jamie told me to breathe.”

The boy yelling and alerting for Smoczyk’s help in the video was Cathryn’s brother, Johnathan.

“Her face was turning red and she fell on the ground and I called Miss Jamie five different times until she heard,” Johnathan said.

But despite the traumatic experience, the family had nothing but gratitude for the quick thinking of their “hero” bus driver.

Justin and Katrina Nelson are Cathryn and Johnathan’s parents and are grateful for Smoczyk’s lifesaving actions.

“I’ve seen kids choke and I’ve seen how scary it is and how you got to react and her reaction was exactly how it should have been,” Katrina said.

Since the accident happened, the Nelsons said they never forget to thank Smoczyk for saving their daughter.

“I saw Jamie’s reaction so I knew it was a pretty intense moment on the bus,” Katrina said. “You know, a kid choking, that’s a pretty scary thing and super grateful she has the awesome reactions and instincts she has.”

“We shouldn’t put stuff in our mouths, especially on moving vehicles,” Katrina said.

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