By Carol McGowan
Argo High School’s Student Resource Officers, Michael Snee and Wagner Antoine, have not only been busy with making sure the Summit school is safe, but have been training staff in how to Stop the Bleed.
Snee has been with the Summit Police Department for approximately seven years, and at Argo High School as an SRO for two years.
Antoine is a Bedford Park police officer and has been an SRO at Argo for the last few years.
The two of them, along with long-time Summit Police Officer Tim Prince, who is the head of Argo High School’s security, take many measures and avenues to make sure the school is safe and well prepared for any situation.
Snee and Antoine have been training staff at Argo to use the valuable Stop the Bleed information if ever needed.
On Feb. 3, Snee, Summit Police Chief Mel Ortiz, Sgt. Kevin Janettas, Officer Matthew Pienkowski, Officer Alberto Valadez, and Summit Fire Chief Anthony Anderson held a similar class at the Summit Public Library.
Snee shared some of his background, and described what Stop the Bleed is all about.
“I was in the Marine Corps infantry for eight years. Five of those years were active duty and three were as a reservist. I did four deployments with one of those deployments being to Afghanistan.”
“The American College of Surgeons Stop the Bleed program that we teach at Argo High School gives the staff members here a better understanding on how to control bleeding of a serious injury.”
“The Threat Assessment Team Argo Community High School were the ones that believed it would be a good idea to train staff members. Ofc. Antoine and I are on the team along with various members from different departments at Argo High School. We meet every month and discuss how to increase safety at Argo to ensure that students can just focus on obtaining an education.”
Snee said it’s not a requirement for all staff members at Argo to learn, but it’s highly encouraged.
“We have trained 24 staff members here at Argo. The goal for the Threat Assessment Team is to have everyone trained in this course. Regarding the process in which departments are chosen, the Threat Assessment Team would brainstorm on who will be closest to an incident. One of the first classes we held was with the student supervisors here at Argo. They monitor the students in the hallways and cafeteria, so it made sense to make them a priority.”
The class that was held at the Summit Public Library on Saturday, was open to the public, and had a 20-person maximum as Ortiz explained that it was the first of its kind and they weren’t sure what kind of response there would be.
It was a two-hour class.
The first hour was spent explaining what Stop the Bleed is, why it’s important to know, and how knowing can save a life before first responders can arrive.
The second hour was hands-on practice.
Those in the class were given a Combat Application Tourniquet to take home, and were taught how to use it correctly on themselves or on another person.
They were also shown limbs and how to pack them correctly and apply pressure to Stop the Bleed. It was taught when it’s appropriate to use a tourniquet if blood is being lost through a limb, or packing and pressure if it’s in the torso.
Everyone who attended the class had very positive comments in the end, including Summit Public Library Director Hadiya Drew.
“This was a great learning experience and I’m glad to have taken part in it. I welcome any future classes to be held here at the library,” she said.
Ortiz said he was happy with the response to the first class and more may be offered in the future.
Anderson, and the Summit Fire Department are holding First Aid and CPR Seminars at the Summit Fire House, 7339 W. 59th Street, Summit on February 24 beginning at 10 a.m.
Residents are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity.
The cost is $25 per person and each seminar is limited to 25 spots due to space.
To register, email Anderson at tanderson@summitfire.net.
A blood drive will be held at the Summit Fire Station on April 20 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
