Thanks to parishioners, portable defibrillator, Indiana priest alive

Published: 2003-11-20

VALPARAISO, Ind. (CNS) -- On July 23, Father Joseph Pawlowski, pastor of St. Paul Parish in Valparaiso, was 15 feet from Pope John Paul II. The next day he was a heartbeat away from heaven. The 55-year-old priest suffered cardiac arrest July 24 in Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport. According to the parishioner who helped revive him, the pastor technically had died, but within minutes was again showing vital signs. A combination of human help and shocks from an Automatic External Defibrillator, known as an AED, restored his life. "It certainly is a blessing," said Father Pawlowski. "Most people get the gift of life once. I got it twice. It just makes me more dedicated to what I'm doing."

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