On March 14, Deja Etheridge, a disabled Army veteran, was getting ready to take her daughter Jordynn to school.
The next morning, she reported feeling ill as a result of the adverse effects of a medicine that she had taken the previous evening. It caused her to get dehydrated and it brought her blood pressure down.
The single mother began the process of warming up her vehicle by turning the engine on, but she had a sudden feeling of dizziness and went back inside to lay down for a few minutes before continuing. Unfortunately for her, she did not make it to the bedroom and passed out before she could reach the stairs.
Jordynn heard her fall and reacted fast, and the home security camera caught her on camera as she dialed 911 and ran outside to check that their address was correct on the mailbox for the dispatcher.
She led the first responders to their home so that her mother could get assistance when they arrived. Also, the little girl had contacted her grandma, who lived in the neighborhood.
Payton, her daughter, who is four years old, was sound sleeping at the time. Thankfully, Jordynn heard her fall and raced to her assistance as soon as she had the chance.
“She jumped right into the fray. She carried out the contingency plan that we had devised in the past together. She immediately phoned my mother, and after that, she called the emergency medical services”.
After Deja regained consciousness, Jordynn handed the phone to her, and Deja used it to describe her predicament to the operator.
“I was extremely privileged in this position to still have my kid home, and thank God I had not made it behind the wheel of a vehicle,” Deja said. “In addition to this, my mother does reside nearby, which is why I have always given her the instruction to get in touch with my mother before anybody else.”
Deja said that she had gone through the emergency procedures with both of her girls.
She began adding images to her contacts as soon as her daughters reached the age when they were able to use her smartphone for entertainment purposes, so that they would be able to recognize who was calling.
In addition to that, Deja made sure that they were aware of vital information that may be used in an emergency, such as their names, her name, and their address.
While driving, she would sometimes pull over in their community and ask her daughters for directions to their home.
Deja has high hopes that sharing her story would encourage other parents to emphasize to their children the significance of learning how to dial 911 in an emergency.