‘Thank God for her’: Head Start director’s quick action saves choking child

WAYNESBORO, Ga. (WRDW/Gray News) - The director of a Head Start program in Goeriga is being hailed as a hero after stepping in to save a choking child during a family event.The emergency unfolded Thursday during the Burke County school’s annual fall family meal, when more than 140 families came to eat with their children and do activities in the classroom.

The Details

Director Yolanda Willis said that upon leaving, the child was given a piece of candy, and it got lodged in his throat. Surveillance video from the center showed little Jo Freeman in the hallway in obvious distress as a guardian nearby tried to help. Willis, about 20 feet away, looked over and realized something was wrong.“When I looked, the child was blue in the face, and I just took action from there, from everything I’ve been trained to do,” Willis said.

“You never know when you’ll be able to use it – and yesterday was the day.”Willis rushed over and began the Heimlich maneuver, performing several abdominal thrusts until the candy c