DETROIT – A 15-year-old boy in Detroit is being honored for helping save his neighbor’s life through CPR. It’s a prestigious award for the teen who was in the right place at the right time.
Gregory Pope III says he learned how to perform CPR thanks to watching Grey’s Anatomy. Thankfully, he was watching because he truly learned how to save a life.
“It feels great,” said Pope III. “Just trying to keep doing what I do.”
Pope has become one of the youngest recipients of the Spirit of Detroit Award for performing CPR on a neighbor who stopped breathing.
“I just felt like I had to do something because nobody really knew how to do it,” Pope III said. “So I just stepped in knowing what I know. I just did what I did.”
Pope’s quick thinking led to the split-second decision to start chest compressions, something he never thought he would get to do in the real world. His father couldn’t be more proud.
“Man, this is tremendous,” said Gregory Pope II. “I got butterflies just like when it happened. He just jumped in. I went back into the house because I couldn’t do nothing but cry.”
Pope III’s mother and his extended family have bragging rights that’ll last her a lifetime.
“It feels so great just to see him be honored for this tremendous action,” said Sianna Smith. “Most people will freeze up, and for him to just jump into action, it’s great.”
“To see them support me, they’ve been supporting me, they’ve been supporting me my whole life,” Pope III said.
Pope III told Local 4 he plans on going to the NFL when he grows up. As a backup, he may be looking into the medical field. Either way, we know he’s going to do great.
