■rm!^m--fc.<- ■ ;-, ...

-Original Message-
From: < b > < « )
Sent Monday, November 20.2006 10:37 AM
To:_< b ) ( 6 )
Cc: DiGregorio, Liz; ( b ) ( 6 )
Subject: RE: Save-A-Life

Channel 7 is the local news in Chicago -1 think it is ABC.

The report questioned her credentials as an RN - could not find any

record of her schooling - and also some conflict between the Red Cross
and Heimltch maneuver. Also questioned the circumstances of her
daughter's accident. Also mentioned SALF receives "homeland security"
money.

I did not see the report - this is second hand info.

(b) ( « )

-Original Message-
From: ( b ) ( 6 )
SentJ\4ojTdjiLNovember20, 2006 9:31 AM
To: (b) (6)
Subject: RE: Save-A-Life

No I wonder if we can get it on the news site...Thanks for the heads

upl (b) (6)

Original Message-
From (b) ( 6 )
Sent: Monday, November 20, 2006 9:38"ATvf
To: DiGregorio, Liz; (b)(6)
Subject: FW: Save-A-Life
Importance; High

Did you all catch this?

Original Message
From: Duncan, James
Sent: Thursday, November 16, 2006 11:56 PM
To: (b)(«)
Subject: tsave-A-UTe

I don't know if any of you saw Channel 7 News tonight, but they are
doing an investigative reporting series on Save-A-Ltfe. It was not
pretty! M6> had to get his boss away from the camera.

Jim
James Duncan
Director,
National Preparedness Division
DHS-FEMA Region V
536 S Clark Street, 6th Floor
Chicago, IL 906QS
(b)(6)

(b)(6) redacted name is Vince Davis, former Save-A-Life

Director of Military Affairs
 (t»<e>

From: | (b>(6>
Sent: Monday. November 20, 2008 1:51 PM
To: (b)(6)
Subject: ABC7Chicago.com: The Maneuver

jim opoka sent you this from ABC7Chicago.com link:

The Maneuver
The Heimlich has become a brand name, like the Band-Aid. Dr. Henry Heimlich claims to have
invented the technique in which you stand behind a choking victim, wrap your arms around them and
pull sharply on their lower abdomen,
Dr. Heimlich is medical advisor for a suburban Chicago charity called the Save-A-Ufe Foundation.
Questions are being raised about both Heimlich and the founder of Save-A-Ufe, Carol Spizzirri.
http://abctocai.go.com/wl s/story?section=loca(&id=:4774369

Comments:

Log on to ABC7 Chicago - http://abc7chicago.com.

Jim Opoka
Regional Program Manager
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Preparedness Directorate
Office of Community Preparedness - Citizen Corps
c/o FEMA Region V
536 South Clark Street
Chicago, Illinois 60605

i i
 Office of Grant* and Training
Directorate for Preparedness
Department of Homeland Security
Washington, DC 20HI

Homeland
Security
Ms. Carol Spizzirri, President
Save-A-Lifc Foundation, Inc.
O'Hare Aerospace Center
9950 West Lawrence Avenue, Suite 300 f£b 1
Schiller Park, IL 60176-1216

Dear Ms. Spizzirri:

It has come to the attention of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that allegations of
misrepresentation have been raised in the public media concerning the Save-A-Life Foundation
(SALF). Specifically, these allegations relate to your educational qualifications and the teaching
methods used by SALF. Other allegations have been made relating to SALF's business practices
and advisory board.

On January 23,2003, DHS entered into a Statement of Affiliation (SOA) with SALF to promote
community preparedness and life safety as a formal Affiliate of the Citizen Corps Program. The
decision to enter into the SOA was based in part on information provided by you and SALF
which has now been brought into question by these allegations. Therefore, DHS requests that
you respond to these allegations and provide documentary support, where available, which
demonstrates that the allegations are incorrect.

Details of the allegations can befoundin media reports available on the internet. You can read
one such report at http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?sectton=investigative&id=4770490.

Please provide a response to the allegations by March 15,2007, or as soon as is practicable, so

DHS can determine if any action needs to be taken with respect to the extant SOA.

Further, some of your recent publications have featured the DHS seal. Permission for non-DHS
entities to use the seal must come from the Secretary for Homeland Security. Absent such
permission, please ensure that future SALF publications do not employ the DHS seal. You may
continue to represent your organization as an Affiliate of Citizen Corps and display the Citizen
Corps logo.

Sincerely,

•Elizabeth DiCregono
c
Acting Director, Office of Community Preparedness
 U.S. Deparrment of Homeland Security
Washington. DC 20528

Homeland
Security
MAR 2 S 2007
Ms. Carol Spizzirri, President
Save-A-Life Foundation, Inc.
O'Hare Aerospace Center
9950 West Lawrence Avenue, Suite 300
Schiller Park, Illinois 60176-1216

Dear Ms. Spizzirri:

Thank you for your February 28,2007, response to the Department of Homeland Security
(Department) which requested information regarding the allegations reported by the
Chicago ABC local station in November, 2006.

There are still a few questions remaining which require clarification as they impact your
Affiliate relationship with the Department:

Nursing credentials. Your response states that errors have been corrected regarding
your claim that you hold nursing credentials. The biography submitted by you in
November, 2003, which accompanied the Save A Life (SALF) Affiliate application
package stated that you have a Bachelor of Science in NursingfromMt Scenario
College, Wisconsin, and that you are a registered nurse. This claim is disputed by
mediareports.The Department requests clarification as to your educational and
professional status. That is, do you have a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from an
accredited institution, and are you or have you been a Registered Nurse? If not why
did you claim such credentials in your biography? '

National Prevailing Guidelines: The Department recognizes that the issues

surrounding the development of prevailing guidelines are complex. We have made a
preliminary inquiry to the American Red Cross (ARC)regardingtheir current
protocols and to the United States Fire Administration (USFA) staff who follow the
development of these national standards. Thefirstaid protocol for a conscious
choking adult or child in the American Red Cross 2005 Guidelines for Emergency
Care and Education is five back blows followed by five abdominal thrusts. The
specific instructions are "Lean the personforwardand give five back blows with the
heel of your hand. (Next) Give 5 quick upward abdominal thrusts." Additional
information from the ARC indicates that this protocol is consistent with protocols
outlined by other international organizations based on the 2005 International
Consensus on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Emergency Cardiovascular
 Care (ECC) Science with Treatment Recommendations (CoSTR) representing the
scientific consensus of experts from a variety of countries, cultures, and disciplines.

The USFA indicates that the national Emergency Medical Services (EMS) guidelines
from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - Emergency Medical
Services (NHTSA-EMS) division references current ARC and/or American Heart
Association (AHA) guidelines when conducting EMS training courses As you
know, NHTSA-EMS is responsibleforthe national guidelines for EMS training and
has been adopted by most State EMS training programs. USFA advises that since
indications are that both the ARC and AHA are adopting the "five and five"
procedure, the prevailing guideline will become thefive-and-fiveprocedure The
Department's Office for Community Preparedness is also following up with AHA
regarding their current guidelines and plans for updates to those guidelines.

In your response you state that SALF programs "will be based upon the same national
prevailing guidelines.. ..and when or if these national prevailing guidelines change,
toe organizationwill review and consider such changes." [f the guidelines of ARC,
AHA and/or NHTSA-EMS change as expected to the "five-and-five procedure," does
fcALF intend to change its organization's curriculum to comply with the new
standards?

Training Presence: You indicated in your response that more than 1.6 million
cfcldren participated in SALF programs. The Department requests a summary of the
States where these children received the training. As you may recall during initial
conversations in November 2003 between SALF and FEMA, there was concern that
SALF had a limited, regional reach. The Departmentrequestsdocumentation to
demonstrate that SALF has grown into a national presence that offers life supportina
first aid training to at least 50 percent of the States.

We would appreciate your assistance in responding to these inquiries in a timely manner

Please forward your response to Mr. Alan Fisher, Senior Attorney, Office of Grants &
Training no later than April 30,2007.

Sincerely,
 Carol J. Spizzirri
Fomder/Presideru <mlm

Carol J. Spizzirri, BSN, RN, Mt Scenario College, Wisconsin, mother of three daughters, President/Founder of the Save A Life
Foundation, a nationally recognized not-for-profit organization whose mission is to train and develop "Bystanders" as volunteers
equipped with life supporting skills to aid in an emergency. Despite a medical career, Carol pursued the need for change in pre-
emergency training shortly sfter the death of her 18 year old daughter, Christina Jean on Labor Day, in 1992, as a result of police
officers not being trained how to render aid prior to EMS arrival.

In 1993 Spizzirri was responsible for the passage of SB 1477, mandating police and firefighters to be trained in First Aid and CPR
prior to graduation from their academies and a federal appropriation bill to help cover the cost. That same year, she recruited
world-renowned emergency medical experts to support her theory, Doctors Peter Safar rFather of CPR)) Henry Heimlich
(Heimlich maneuver) and Stan Zydlo, and published the first basic emergency life supporting curriculums for school age children
(Save A Life For Kids and Bystander Basics). Soon those with EMS credentials joined her as Instructors to train the children at
local schools.

Carol has been instrumental in the development of various committees such as the National Guidelines for First Aid Training In
Occupational Settings Committee. Her children's programs have also been used by HRSA's Maternal Child Health Bureau to
develop national guidelines for Basic Emergency Lifesaving Skills (BELS) for schools.

1997, Carol convinced Illinois legislators to fund a pilot study to research the methodologies, effectiveness and retention of
children, grades K-12,b, being taught SALF's programs to nearly 50,000 children with various ethnic and social backgrounds in
public schools. The study demonstrated a 97% retention level and a 57% attitude change to help another in need. These same
students reported five saves during this study.

1998, SALF grew statewide with the development of Branch offices within hospttai emergency departments, endorsed by National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and received the lnfl Fire Chiefs Associattoi best program award. Spizzirri went on to
publish two advanced programs to meet corporate and child-care needs, and help supplement the free training of children. To date
SALF has trained well over 600,000 Illinois children, including Chicago Public Schools and has expanded to national proportions
through Illinois Department of Public Health and Centers for Disease Control line-items.

Today, SALF joins with U.S. Citizen Corps in strengthening its mission to reach all communities through its associationwith
municipal leaders across America.

To reasonably sum up her accomplishments, since Christina's death, Carol says, "ft's A God Thing'.

Bridge the Gap Summit Save A Life Foundation, Inc.

September 16-17,2003 9950 W. Lawrence Ave Ste 300
Chicago Hilton and Towers Schiller Park, Illinois 60176
Downtown Chicago 847-928-9683 Fax 847-928-96%
www.salf.org
 FEMA

STATEMENT OF AFFILIATION

BETWEEN

T H E FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

AND THE SAVE A LIFE FOUNDATION

I'he Federal Emergency Management Agency III VIA I and the Save A Life Foundation ISA 1.1-1 \ icu
community emergency preparedness as a lop priority for their respective organizations and lor the American
people. As such, our organizations have come together in partnership to promote the mission of Citizen Corps.
with an emphasis on training citizen respondcrs as immediate providers of life supporting first aid.

Under FEMA'S direction, Citizen Corps is a community-based initiative to engage all citizens in homeland
security and community and family preparedness ihrough public education and outreach, training opportunities.
and volunteer programs. Programs under the Citizen Corps umbrella help communities prevent, prepare for.
and respond to terrorism, crime, public health issues, and disasters of all kinds. Citizen Corps encourages all
Americans to take an active role in building safer, stronger, and better-prepared communities.

1 he SALF is a nalional non-profit organization that seeks to train the public in Life Supporting l-'irst Aid (LSFA).
including the Heimlich maneuver. Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPRi. and ihe use of Automated External
Dclibrillators (AIDs) in order to prepare all citizens, especially children, lor emergencies, accidents or disasters.
whether man-made or natural.

together FEMA and SALF agree to work in collaborative partnership to:

r Raise public awareness about training in life supporting first aid;

> Promote the formation of local Citizen Corps Councils and assist these Councils w till providing citizen
training in emergency preparedness and life supporting first aid. including Community Emergency
Response learn (CERT) training and Bystander Basics:
r Encourage communities lo develop local strategies lor public health education and training opportunities
of age-appropriate life supporting first aid for school children:
r Support the expansion of vital Public Access Delibrillation (PAD) programs, in conjunction with CPR
training:
> Publicly acknowledge the affiliation of Citizen Corps and SALF. which w ill include website links, co-
logos on publications, and references in printed materials:
#- Coordinate their respective activities to further their shared mission: and
> Keep FEMA informed of activities conducted in support of Citizen Corps and provide an annual repon
summarizing those activities.

Both parlies enter into this agreement in good faith and agree to pursue their missions as slated

citizen^corps

/f-fV-T.-?'-
JOE M ALLBAUGH CAROL J . Sf>LjZkrtBl
D I * C C T O I » FIOKRAi. f » r , . " . r s . - . MANAOCMBH1 P»«»IOBNT/FOIINOEB S»VG * L l F * TOUNOATION