Tyra Winters had trained hard to entertain the crowd. Little did she know that she’d end up saving one crowd member’s life.
It was time for Rockwell High School’s homecoming parade.
Tyra Winters and the other cheerleaders came out on a float and started dancing.
Nicole Hornback had taken her two young children, Clark and Warren, to see the parade.
And then something shocking happened. Two-year-old Clark began choking on a piece of candy.
Nicole started screaming out for help, hoping that someone knew how to save her baby.
Nicole Hornback told KETK NBC:
“He was just physically just choking, just gagging and just gasping for air.”
Instead of panicking, Tyra jumped off the school float and ran toward the boy.
She knew she could save him if she got there soon enough.
She reached Clark and started performing the Heimlich maneuver on the child.
Tyra Winters explained:
“I picked the kiddo up. I tilted him downward, and I hit like two or three good back thrusts, and he started spitting up.”
Soon, the candy had become dislodged from the child’s throat. Clark could feel the air rushing into his lungs.
Tyra realized that the boy was going to be fine. So without a word, she handed him back to his mom and ran back to her float to carry on with her routine, like a true professional.
Naturally, Nicole was incredibly grateful to Tyra.
She later posted about how the cheerleader had rescued Clark on Facebook, explaining that the entire thing happened so fast that she didn’t even get to learn the girl’s name.
Luckily, someone who worked at the school saw this post and connected Nicole with Tyra.
Soon, Nicole, Tyra, and Nicole’s kids were meeting in person properly.
Tyra and Nicole hugged. And Clark and Tyra high fived, as the boy was a little shy.
It turns out that Tyra learned how to perform the Heimlich manoeuver from her mother, who runs a group home for foster children.
Clark is the first child that Tyra has saved, but almost definitely not the last. After high school, she plans to study to become a pediatric surgeon. If this amazing story is anything to go by, then Tyra sure does have what it takes to achieve her dreams.
A news report about Tyra’s rescue then appeared online, where it went viral. To date, it has gained over 1 million views. It also has more than 30,000 likes.
People like Tyra show why we shouldn’t stereotype cheerleaders. So many people say that cheerleaders are just ditzy. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Hopefully, people like Tyra will be successful in breaking any cheerleader stereotypes. After all, young people get enough flack from older people without us judging their hobbies.
Just imagine how many people have made fun of Tyra and other girls in her position for wanting to be a cheerleader. And then she not only saves a child’s life but manages to complete her performance? How many of us could do that!?
Be sure to watch the video below to see Tyra meet with the little boy she saved!
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
