Drew Overlee

The lifesaving care of a good samaritan and emergency response team made all the difference when Drew Overlee went into cardiac arrest while on a run a few days before Christmas and his 64th birthday. He dropped to the ground near a business on Bloomingdale Avenue in Valrico, Florida.

Bystanders saw it happen and Jake O’Brien ran over to help. Drew had stopped breathing and had no pulse. One onlooker called 911 and O’Brien started CPR. It was his first time giving CPR, a skill he learned during a class training in college a few years earlier.

Paramedic Lieutenant Tobi Porter happened to be right around the corner with the ambulance and arrived within minutes. Captain Brandon Yates and his firefighter team on Engine 7 were close by at the time of the emergency, too.

Drew arrived at Brandon Hospital as a John Doe, and his identity was not known until he was fingerprinted by a deputy from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. As soon as he was identified, his wife was immediately contacted about the emergency. He is alive today due to the lifesaving care he received that day.

On May 24, 2024, Drew met his good Samaritan for the first time and reunited with his caregivers outside the ambulance entry at HCA Florida Brandon Hospital.

Watch his story and the emotional reunion.