H.R. No. 553
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Demonstrating exceptional skill and quick thinking,
a number of first responders and family members worked together to
render lifesaving aid to Wayne Pullen, a retired member of the Texas
Highway Patrol, on December 19, 2022; and
WHEREAS, On that evening, Captain Pullen was visiting with
his daughter, Cyndi Patterson, and son-in-law, Tom Patterson, at
their home in Lumberton, when he experienced a sudden cardiac
arrest; Mr. Patterson began performing CPR while Ms. Patterson
called 9-1-1 and then contacted Greg Smith, a nurse practitioner
who was not far from the family home; around this time, the
Pattersons' son-in-law Jake Droddy arrived on the scene and
assisted Mr. Patterson with CPR; and
WHEREAS, Greg Smith and Fire Chief Jeffrey McNeel of
Lumberton Fire & EMS soon took over from Mr. Patterson and
Mr. Droddy and continued performing CPR on Captain Pullen; the two
men determined that the victim, whose pulse could not be detected,
needed to be resuscitated with the automated external defibrillator
that Chief McNeel had brought to the scene; he continued
compressions while Captain Dakota Collier established an airway,
and firefighter Jessica Garza quickly applied the AED; working
together, they restored Captain Pullen's heartbeat; and
WHEREAS, Captain Pullen was treated at hospitals in Beaumont
and Houston, where he is continuing to make remarkable strides
toward being fully rehabilitated; his doctors credited his survival
to the swift actions taken by the five people who intervened to save
his life before emergency medical help arrived; these individuals
are notably all first responders by profession, as Cyndi Patterson
is a retired dispatcher with the Hardin County Sheriff's Office,
Tom Patterson and Jake Droddy are both deputies with the Jefferson
County Sheriff's Office, and Greg Smith is a deputy with the Hardin
County Precinct 5 Constable's Office; and
WHEREAS, By applying their training in a time of crisis,
these seven individuals acted quickly and decisively to provide
vital assistance, and in so doing, they helped to avert what could
have been a terrible tragedy; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas
Legislature hereby commend Cyndi Patterson, Tom Patterson, Jake
Droddy, Greg Smith, Jeffrey McNeel, Dakota Collier, and Jessica
Garza for their outstanding efforts during a medical emergency and
extend to them sincere best wishes for the future.
Bailes
______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 553 was adopted by the House on March
30, 2023, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House