November 29, 2021 10:30 a.m. 

Athletes at Sutherlin High School have received a portable automated external defibrillator from the David Heller Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to keep hearts healthy.

Sutherlin High Principal John Martz said the foundation worked with the Oregon School Activities Association to select the school.

The AED will be available for at-home athletic events and will travel with the school’s teams to away games.

David Heller from Scappoose, Oregon was 17 when he died in 2005, the result of an undiagnosed heart condition, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Heller displayed no prior symptoms to his family, friends or coaches, indicating that anything was wrong.

The David Heller Foundation was created in his name to promote the importance of cardiac screening in teen athletes. Now the foundation works to provide AEDs to schools in Oregon and southwest Washington.

SHS Athletic Director Josh Grotting said, “In the event one of our athletes needs assistance, we’ll be prepared”. Martz said the school is grateful to be awarded an AED that can be used now and in the future.

To learn more about the foundation, go to: www.davidhellerfoundation.org.