On Sunday, April 8th, ranger Brett Spaulding was off-duty and at home when he heard screaming from his neighbor’s yard. Spaulding investigated and found that his neighbor had attempted to commit suicide by hanging himself from his deck. He picked up the man while the man’s wife got a knife to cut him down. Spaulding directed another neighbor to call 911, freed the man, then began CPR on him with another neighbor’s assistance. When paramedics arrived on scene, the man was breathing on his own. He was taken to the hospital and survived his suicide attempt. Spaulding, an interpretive ranger at Monocacy since October, 2001, regularly attends the park’s CPR/AED training classes. His quick thinking and response saved the man’s life.
