It isn’t every day a congressional candidate gets to save a life on the campaign trail. But former U.S. Navy SEAL combat vet medic Derrick Van Orden, who is a Republican running for Congress in the Wisconsin 3rd congressional district, did just that last week.

On July 9, what started out as a fun birthday dinner for a friend ended in a near-death experience for 77-year-old Betty Kabara. It might have been fatal if Van Orden hadn’t been around.

“We were eating and all of a sudden I felt something like completely shut my— was in my throat. And I couldn’t talk, I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t swallow, I couldn’t do anything,” said Kabara.

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“I saw one of the folks that came to the event, he was a doctor here locally, moving out with a purpose,” said Van Orden. Van Orden, his training and experience kicking in, followed the physician and headed toward the action to render assistance.

He saw Kabara sitting unresponsive and turning blue in the face. With years of experience as a combat medic, Derrick stepped in and provided rescue breaths to her until she was revived.

“I looked at her and I said Betty…Betty, come back to us…come back to us, Betty,” said Van Orden. “And then after I gave her some rescue breaths, she kind of coughed, and I looked at her and her eyes came back, and the life back into her face. It’s absolutely beautiful.”

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“He truly knew how to act in a state of emergency,” said the grateful Kabara. “They were able to finally get me back to breathing…I’m wishing with all of my heart that he makes it,” she said.

In related news, the Van Orden campaign announced that during the second quarter of 2020 his dynamic effort to beat Democrat incumbent Ron Kind raised more than $500,000. That’s a high watermark highlighting the strong support for the challenger’s campaign. Raising this amount in one quarter bodes well for Van Orden’s chances in the August primary and in November.

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With a total of $526,335.11 raised, the campaign is positioned strongly to compete with the funding Ron Kind has received from national Democrats like Nancy Pelosi. Van Orden’s donors are represented from each of the 3rd district’s 18 counties and from 71 of the 72 Wisconsin counties. The Van Orden campaign released the following statement on their fundraising success: “The support my campaign has received is a reflection of the sincere desire for change in Wisconsin’s 3rd District. For too long, constituents of this district have been toyed with and lied to by Ron Kind for his own gain, and I’m running to end that. The people of Wisconsin know that I don’t take action because it’s politically convenient. I take action because it’s the right thing to do.”

Derrick Van Orden is just the kind of courageous fresh face we need in Washington. To support the campaign, visit VanOrdenForCongress.com.

This piece was written by David Kamioner on July 13, 2020. It originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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