Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) performed the Heimlich maneuver on Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) last month to keep her from choking on a turkey sandwich.
Schakowsky (pictured here) told ITK that on April 21, she was eating a turkey sandwich with her friend, Illinois Democratic strategist Carol Ronen in the members only dining room when a piece of turkey went down the wrong tube.
She began choking. "I stood up, and I think there's an international symbol for choking, but at that moment, I made the international symbol for Heimlich instead."
Ronen noticed it first and did one Heimlich hug, Schakowsky said, " but then Kendrick, who was at the next table, realized what was happening."
Meek is a former Florida state trooper and a trained emergency responder, so when he saw Schakowsky having trouble breathing, he didn't hesitate to act.
Meek put his arms around Schakowsky, made a fist, and pressed upwards into her diaphragm, further dislodging the turkey. "He only did the maneuver once, then he pounded on my back, which is when I finally spit it out," Schakowsky said.
"He really knows what he's doing, given his experience," she continued, "And he told me later that the Heimlich can break someone's ribs if you're not careful, so that's why you pound on the person's back between grips."
Schakowsky said she felt fine afterwards, but the incident reminded her, "of how fragile life is." Despite lasting "only 30 seconds," she said, "This was no joke. I couldn't breathe at all, and I was really scared."
Schakowsky credits both Meek and Ronen with saving her life, and she recounted the incident on Friday in Chicago during her big annual fundraiser, the Ultimate Women's Power Lunch, which was attended by more than 1,500 supporters.
Meek is running for the Senate seat that's being vacated by Sen. George LeMieux (R-Fla.), and as Schakowsky mentioned a number of Democrats running for higher office this year, she said, "Kendrick Meek is a great guy, he even saved my life!"
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