Wauconda 16-year-old honored with Citizen's Lifesaving Award
A 16-year-old girl is now the youngest person to ever receive the Citizen's Lifesaving Award from the McHenry County sheriff's office, according to a news release.
Megan Ringel, of Wauconda, was presented with the award — the highest honor a civilian can receive from the sheriff's office — on Wednesday afternoon.
Ringel was visiting a friend in the 5000 block of Wildwood Drive in McHenry on Aug. 16 when she saved a 34-year-old man who has a history of seizures.
She heard people yelling for help around 9:20 p.m. and ran up to the man, who was not breathing. She then performed CPR on him until rescue personnel arrived.
Ringel was trained for CPR in Girl Scouts, a baby-sitting class and in a health class at Wauconda High School. The sheriff's office said the man survived because of Ringel's quick thinking and lifesaving actions.