Damar Hamlin hosts CPR event before preparing for his return to action Monday night

Sep 05, 2023 at 11:00 AM

Patrick Warren

Contributing Correspondent

Damar Hamlin’s Chasing M’s Back to School Drive at Front Park on September 4, 2023.
Photo by Joe Hrycych

As he prepares to make his first return to a non-preseason football game, Damar Hamlin and his Chasing M's Foundation hosted a back-to-school football clinic for the Boys and Girls Club of Buffalo on Labor Day.

Beyond participating in flag football drills and scrimmages, kids and their families got a chance to learn about the importance of AED devices and the basics of performing hands-only CPR, both of which saved Hamlin's life when he suffered cardiac arrest in January against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Because of the lifesaving on-field actions of the Bills' training staff, Hamlin is alive today and preparing to continue his dream of playing for an NFL team.

Hamlin played in all three of Buffalo's preseason games and was the second-leading tackler behind rookie linebacker Dorian Williams. He returned to his hometown of Pittsburgh in the second week of preseason, with several of his family members in attendance.

"It was real special, like a moment of serendipity, just like life coming full circle for me," Hamlin said after the game. "Just to go through what I went through my entire life, staying home, choosing to stay at Pitt out of so many schools ... and then to come back home, my second preseason game, getting back to playing. It's back at home right in my backyard, right?"

Although Pittsburgh took the win, Hamlin was all smiles after the game, giving former teammate and Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett his jersey.

As he reflected on his experience since that pivotal January day, Hamlin made sure to highlight the importance of learning CPR when addressing the clinic participants before signing autographs and greeting fans.

"For those who learned CPR today, I want to give you a special thank you," Hamlin said at a youth football clinic held on Monday. "As my story shows us, we all know that CPR saves lives and it comes down to somewhere, someday, somebody is going to need help. And the people that came out to learn CPR today, you can be that person. You can be that person that has me here today standing in front of you once again."

As Hamlin prepares to move past the 2022 season, he is bringing attention to how to save athletes like him.

"This is a big, big, big, big piece of the new normal, you know, raising awareness for CPR and AEDs," Hamlin said. "Continuing on and taking this tour worldwide will be something that will be my mission forever."

Hamlin and the American Heart Association have partnered to raise awareness for the importance of CPR training. As a greater proportion of young athletes suffer cardiac arrest compared to other young people, making sure that those around youth athletics are especially prepared is vital. Not all cardiac conditions in young athletes are caused by commotio cordis, as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is the leading cause of cardiac arrest in young people, but performing CPR and using an AED can be incredibly effective in any acute cardiac episode.