Twin Army Captains rushed home after father suffers heart attack
KENOSHA (WITI) -- FOX6 News recently told you about two twin brothers from Kenosha serving overseas in Afghanistan. Now, we have learned those brothers were called home after their father suffered a severe heart attack. They are thanking a YMCA trainer who has been credited for saving their father's life.
It was a bombshell dropped in the middle of battle -- but it wasn't on the front lines. It was over the telephone.
"We received word through the Red Cross our father had a massive heart attack. We didn`t know if he was still alive," Matthew Mayor said.
FOX6 News first featured twin Army Captains Matthew and Mark Mayor on the Fourth of July, when the brothers recorded a patriotic salute for friends and family members back home. It was a welcome surprise for their parents, Nick and Jeanine.
One week later, Nick suffered a heart attack.
"He came out the door and I turned around to look at him and I saw his chin hit the floor. Bam!" YMCA fitness coordinator Kelly Hetzel said.
When Hetzel saw Nick leave her class at the Kenosha YMCA, she thought he just tripped and hurt himself. She rushed over and realized something was terribly wrong.
"You can see death on his face. And all you want to do is save him," Hetzel said.
Hetzel rushed to perform CPR, and rushed to grab the AED from downstairs -- saving this father's life.
"I don`t believe in coincidences. Kelly was here at the right time, the right place," Mark Mayor said.
Hetzel is now being called a hero, as doctors say Nick wouldn't be alive today without her help.
Now, the Mayors are fighting a different kind of battle. Jeanine is out of work, and the twins' emergency leave will expire at the end of the month.
"Medical bills are piling up. The out-of-pocket expenses that naturally come with this type of event," Matthew Mayor said.
Now, the children of proud parents are asking for your help. They've established the Nick Mayor Benefit Fund in the hopes others with heart can help their father mend his.