In the cold and early morning of Oct. 11, four area teenagers met their swim coach at the Broadwater Hot Springs just outside of Helena for the first of two daily practices. It was within the first 30 minutes of drills that one of the teens looked out of the water and noticed that their coach had fallen.
Unknown to the boys at the time, their coach, John Kramer, was suffering a stroke.
And, fortunately for Kramer, Garrett Krattiger, Isaac Urban, Aidan Van Wyk and Devin Goetsch, all 17, knew exactly what to do next.
All four boys, who are a part of the Helena Lions Swim Team, worked as lifeguards at the Last Chance Splash Waterpark and have been trained in CPR. They checked for his pulse and tried to get their coach to respond.
“We were super calm because that’s how we were trained as lifeguards because bad things happen when you freak out,” Urban said in an interview with Montana Free Press.
Urban called 911, and Krattiger contacted his mother who is a nurse, while Van Wyk and Goetsch continued to monitor their coach.
“We know, like, what to do in that kind of situation. So we just trusted our training. We didn’t really freak out,” Goetsch told MTFP. “So I think, just based on that, we handled it pretty well.”
About 15 minutes later, the ambulance arrived and paramedics transported Kramer to St. Peter’s Health before he was flown to the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City for further care.
“It wouldn’t have been better with anyone else than us four boys because I just feel like we were the ones that would handle that the best,” Krattiger said.
About a month later, during a Helena City Commission meeting, Mayor Wilmot Collins declared a week in November as Stoke Recognition and Response Awareness week. He also presented Mayoral Recognition Awards to all four team members and their coach, who was in attendance.
“Quick response is the only way to save a stroke victim. Every minute counts,” said Collins, who further praised the teens for their “lifesaving efforts” and “skilled heroic response.”
“We know, like, what to do in that kind of situation. So we just trusted our training. We didn’t really freak out.”
Devin Goetsch
Kramer, or Coach JK as he prefers, just celebrated his 57th birthday and is now back at his home in Helena along with his sister, Laura Kramer, who is staying with him as he recovers.
The coach, who is new to Helena, moved from Bellingham, Wash., in August to take the coaching position. He shared how much help and support he received from the swim team’s families and community from the moment he arrived in Helena.
“I called a couple of people from the swim team [to help]. They all showed up, about eight of them plus kids,” Kramer told MTFP. “They had me unloaded in half the time it would have taken a professional crew.”
His sister shared what that response has meant to her brother.
“It was like their first opportunity to meet him and that sense of community was just amazing,” she said. “It was that first experience of Helena. If this is what Helena’s all about, we want to be a part of it.”
Kramer resigned from the coaching position as he continues to heal, but he remains team-oriented and in good spirits.
“We offer tryouts on the swim team Monday through Friday,” Kramer said.
The swim club honorees said their training made the difference.
“I never really expected to save someone, but knowing the skills and just really knowing everything and what to do, really helped,” Krattiger said.
“I think my biggest takeaway,” Goetsch added, “is just don’t take anything for granted because life can change in like an instant.”
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