Teacher adds lifesaver to her resume

Laguna Beach resident Diane Allard was in an Irvine grocery store ready to get her hands on some strawberries last month when her cell phone rang.

The caller told Allard that her 8-year-old son, Corwin, was in the Top of the World Elementary School nurse’s office recovering after he choked on a strawberry.

“I didn’t buy any strawberries that day,” Allard said last week inside the classroom of Corwin’s teacher, Tauna LaPierre.

Corwin accidentally left his lunch inside the locked classroom, so LaPierre, who teaches second grade, allowed him to eat a snack once students returned to the room. LaPierre, who said she had her back to the kids for less than a minute, was about to read a story aloud when a student approached her.

“One of the girls came up to me and said, ‘He is choking,’” LaPierre said. “I turned and his face was bright red.”

Startled, LaPierre walked up to Corwin and asked if he wanted her to perform the Heimlich maneuver.

“I had no adult in the room to ask, I had never done it before,” LaPierre said. “I got behind him and gave three thrusts. Nothing. I started panicking and walked him to the door, and another teacher walked by. I was almost in tears. He started coughing and, it was like you see in the movies, it flew out of his throat.”

Corwin never lost consciousness and is grateful that LaPierre received CPR training. Teachers need to be CPR certified to earn their teaching credential, but aren’t required to renew, Principal Mike Conlon said.

The Laguna Beach Unified School District offers periodic renewal classes for teachers and staff to take if they desire.

LaPierre said she has taken between three and five CPR training classes to keep current.

“I’m really happy and glad [LaPierre] became a teacher,” Corwin said.

To show their appreciation, the Allards are nominating LaPierre for a local hero through SureFire CPR, an organization that offers CPR and first-aid courses throughout Southern California.

The public can cast votes for LaPierre on SureFire’s Facebook page. If selected, LaPierre could win $600.

“We feel teachers are heroes every day in what they do for kids,” Allard said. “What she did is so meaningful. I still get choked up. I feel like we can’t express enough to the school system for training teachers.”