The lifesaver next door: How CPR training helped a Vermont woman save her neighbor’s life

By Jennifer Costa, regional communications director

It was an ordinary autumn night for the Coughlin Family.

“I was in the kitchen cooking dinner,” Beth Coughlin remembered. “Chicken on the stovetop.”

Beth Coughlin, lifesaving awardee

The only thing out of place that evening was the temperature.

“It was one of those unusually warm October nights. I was in my bare feet and shorts and a t-shirt. The windows were open,” she continued.

But the peaceful calm of their quiet Vermont neighborhood was about to erupt.

“While she was cooking, I was at the bottom of the driveway and I saw this person running toward me,” Beth’s husband Chris recalled. “The person was frantically screaming, ‘I need someone to help lift a heavy man,’ which made no sense to me. Beth heard the commotion and came running. As soon as they got closer, the young person asked if anyone knew CPR. Beth said, ‘I know CPR,’ and took off running. I’ve never seen my wife run so fast.”

“I ran barefoot busting through acorns,” Beth said. 

The young person led Beth to a home a few doors down. Although they were neighbors, the two families did not know one another.

“I walked into the house and saw their stepfather unresponsive on the floor. His wife was there, and she told me her husband had become unresponsive and was unconscious.”

The man’s wife was on the phone with 911 but was unable to perform CPR. CPR increases the likelihood of surviving a cardiac arrest. That’s when the heart stops beating or beats too ineffectively to circulate blood to the brain and other vital organs. It’s not just for healthcare workers and emergency responders. CPR can double or triple the chance of survival when bystanders take action. 

“I was like, ‘I got this,’” Beth said. “His wife moved out of the way, and I just started compressions. 911 was telling me to keep doing the compressions and not to worry about rescue breathing.”

Beth was first trained in CPR as a teenager. She wanted to become a lifeguard for a summer job, so her parents signed her up for a Red Cross certification course. She went on to become a water safety instructor – something she continued through college. Now Beth works as a teacher, which requires her to be certified in First Aid and CPR. She keeps up with her training to ensure her skills stay sharp.

“I’ve never actually had to do CPR on a real person before this. I’d only done it on the dummies,” Beth said. “But in that moment, I don’t even think I was thinking. The adrenaline just came over me – and I just did it.”

“He was 6-foot-5, 280 pounds, 74 years old. He was your classic, strong Vermont woodsman,” Chris said. “He was an active guy, but [on this day] his breathing was very shallow. I was leaning over trying to talk to him while Beth was doing compressions.”

Beth never wavered, continuing compressions for 10 to 15 minutes. She was the help the man needed until the EMTs arrived. First responders rushed him to the hospital. Beth later learned the man was suffering from a bacterial infection that essentially shutdown his body. Forty-eight hours after she sprang into action, Beth received the best news ever.

“I was told he was squeezing his wife’s hand at the hospital and that was the moment I was finally like, ‘Ah. He’s really okay.’ They said if I hadn’t done the compressions, he most likely would not have survived. I had a hard time believing it at first.”

Chris was so proud of his wife that he reached out to the American Red Cross to nominate her for a national Lifesaving Award. In December 2024, after thorough review, Beth Coughlin was awarded the Red Cross Certificate of Extraordinary Personal Action, which recognizes individuals for saving or sustaining a life in an emergency. 

“It actually came as quite a surprise,” Beth said, who was unaware of her husband’s nomination. “I wasn’t looking for any accolades for this. I feel like this is something anybody would have done in my position.”

“My wife is a kind, calm person, but I’ve never seen her take command with such strength and confidence as she did that night,” Chris said. “She never once looked at me with a face of panic. She just had full control of the whole situation – and I was so impressed by her actions.”

Each year, EMS cares for more than 350,000 individuals in the United States experiencing a non-traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Just over 70% of those happen at home. Sadly, about 90% of those who experience an OHCA die. For every minute that immediate CPR and use of an AED is delayed, survival chances decrease by 10%. Learning how to perform CPR properly takes just a few short hours, but it can change a life forever.

“If you are in that situation and you don’t know what to do, it’s pretty scary,” Beth said. “But if you are at least aware of what to do, you can help. Everyone who is capable of doing it should get trained.”

Our communities are safer thanks to the nearly 3.8 million people who train each year in Red Cross First Aid, CPR and AED classes. Red Cross CPR training classes give you the information and the skills you need to help adults, children and infants during cardiac emergencies. 

Whether you choose 100% in-person or blended learning CPR classes, our world-class instructors deliver the most up-to-date information that's engaging and effective, preparing you for the moments that matter. For more information, click HERE.