Excerpts from the NWHerald.com:

For more than 30 years, Cary Fire Protection District Capt. Dennis Krenz has taught Cary-Grove High School sophomores a skill he hopes they’ll never need to use – CPR.

Schools in Illinois weren’t required to provide students with a general knowledge of how to perform CPR until 2014, but Krenz had been volunteering his time to teach students long before then.

It’s estimated Krenz has taught more than 14,000 students, and because of his work, he is one of six people in the state to receive the Illinois Fire Safety Alliance Life Safety Award this year.

Sophomores at Cary-Grove High School learn CPR from their health teachers before being taught and tested for a day by Krenz and other volunteers from the fire district.

Krenz also helped the school receive grants to buy its own mannequins and automated external defibrillators to use for practice.

Aside from teaching CPR, Krenz also tells stories from calls the department has received, and covers topics including drug use and wearing a seatbelt, he said.

The Cary Fire Protection District offers CPR classes from 7 to 10 p.m. the first Wednesday of every month. For information, visit www.caryfire.com.

thanks Dan