Ozaukee County sheriff honors family, first responders with saving man's life after cardiac arrest

OZAUKEE COUNTY, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The Ozaukee County Sheriff's Office is honoring first responders for their efforts in helping save a man's life in November.

On Nov. 11, around 11:07 p.m., Debra Koch called 911 because her husband, David, was suffering a cardiac arrest at their house in the Town of Belgium.

Their daughter, Dana came downstairs and immediately started giving her dad CPR. She had been CPR certified for years.

"I hadn't taken CPR since I was in high school many years ago," said Debra Koch. "When I got her to come and help, she knew exactly what to do. She did it perfectly and she saved her dad's life. That's the real miracle for me."

Ozaukee County Sheriff James Johnson honored Dana Koch and Debra Koch with the Sheriff's Coin of Appreciation Wednesday. He also gave the Sheriff's Office Livesaving awards to the three deputies who responded to the Koch's home and the 911 dispatcher who assisted the family.

The family is now hoping their story inspires others to learn CPR. They all become certified after the incident.

"It's important for anybody just because you never know when it's going to happen. You have no idea who around you is going to need it," said Dana Koch.

David Koch had five weeks in recovery and was released from the hospital this week. 

"This will go a lot farther than just this incident within our family. This reaches out to the community, and the community can learn from this. It benefits everybody," he said. "As crazy as it may sound, I'm glad to be a part of this."