The Slice: Some lifesavers don’t come with a price

Sometimes days that start out all prosaic and routine take a sharp turn toward the unexpected.

That happened to Colbert’s Gail Quaid late last month.

Her husband, Steve, had left for Seattle on July 23. He was visiting their son. They were going to do a bunch of guy stuff.

“The next morning, I dropped off my mother-in-law at Wandermere for her hair appointment and left to run errands till time to pick her up,” wrote Quaid. “All so normal.”

Her plan was to start at Wal-Mart. She wanted to return some cat food.

Once inside the big store, something happened. “As best I can piece together from what others have told me (I certainly don’t remember), I collapsed with cardiac arrest.”

Quaid is 65 and pretty fit. She is a type 1 insulin-dependent diabetic, but there was no reason to expect something like this.

Two men saw her drop to the floor. They began to administer CPR. They knew what they were doing. They revived Quaid without injuring her.

“On behalf of myself, my husband, my son, my mother-in-law, and my extended family and friends, I send my thanks and appreciation to those quiet unsung heroes who very literally saved my life.”

She also wants to thank the EMTs who soon arrived as well as several helpful store employees.

Quaid was taken to Sacred Heart. A few days later, she underwent quadruple bypass surgery.

She is now recovering at home. When I spoke with her on the phone, she sounded good.

Oh, one more thing. “A few days after I returned home, I went through my purse and discovered an extra pair of very nice sunglasses. I can only think that they somehow fell into my purse during the numerous events taking place that day.”

If they might be yours, please contact The Slice. I will forward your contact information to Quaid.

I have a hunch she will call you back. She was too out of it to communicate much of anything right after her heart attack.

But now Quaid would like nothing better than to be able to thank everyone who had a hand in her rescue.

“They brought me back.”

Today’s Slice question: Has anyone ever regretted not getting a tattoo?