By
AUGUST 1998.
Kel was in his office finishing up some paperwork. He was anxious to go on his vacation.
Joe stuck his head in. “Do you still need that ride to the airport tomorrow?
“I sure do. Thanks again Joe.”
“Where are you going again?”
“Minneapolis. An old friend is meeting me there.”
“What are you going to do there?”
“We’re going to go up past Duluth for a few days, then we’ll drive around the Twin Cities for a few days, maybe drive down to Rochester for a day. After that, we’ll be staying at a motel near the State Fairgrounds. I won’t be back until after Labor Day.”
“Why so long?”
“Teddy has relatives that show dairy cattle at the state fair. We’ll be exploring it for ten, no, twelve days. The first time I went it was ten days. Now it’s twelve days.”
“When was the first time you were there?”
“When I was a resident. Teddy took me there. He said ‘You’ve probably never seen anything like this before.’ He was right about that.”
Joe grinned. “Have fun Kel.”
“I plan to.”
The next day arrived. Joe took Kel to the airport. Kel had a window seat on the flight.. The flight to Minneapolis was uneventful and the landing was smooth. Teddy had driven up from Rochester to meet him.
After collecting the luggage, Kel and Teddy headed to Duluth. They spent a few days exploring Duluth and the area along the north shore of Lake Superior. Kel loved that area because it reminded him of parts of the California coastline. They also ate at various places in the area. While they were there, Kel saw a sight he’d never forget. A full moon rising over the lake. It looked like it was touching the water. The shimmering reflection rippling gently on the mirror like surface of the water was absolutely spectacular and breathtaking.
They visited Lake Itasca, the source of the mighty Mississippi River. Kel took off his shoes and socks and waded across the river. That was something he couldn’t do downstream. Then they went back to the cities. They spent some time exploring them. Teddy knew where to go because he was from the area. Kel trusted Teddy to guide him around the area.
Before they knew it, it was state fair time. The Great Minnesota Get-Together as it was called by the locals. Kel & Teddy developed a routine. They came in together and stayed together as best they could. Kel told Teddy that he couldn’t wait to see the butter sculpture in the Dairy building.
Teddy said “It’s called the ‘Empire Commons’ now.”
“Since when?”
“Several years ago, but they still have the butter sculpture in there.”
Kel was glad to hear that. He liked seeing a likeness of ‘Princess Kay of the Milky Way’ sculpted out of a block of pure butter. It always amazed him to see that. The sculpting was done in a refrigerated booth so the butter wouldn’t melt.
Teddy and Kel had a pre arranged meeting place. Teddy took Kel there to show him where it was. It was a radio station booth across from the giant yellow slide giant. Kel wouldn’t forget the place, ‘NEW COUNTRY K102.’ He looked to see what else was nearby. There was roasted corn, the malt shop, and the grandstand was close by.
Kel had some of the roasted corn. It was great! He loved it and had another ear. Kel tried a lot of different foods. He found a place called the Gass Station. He tried the food there. He liked the food and the atmosphere. He even tried the pork chop on a stick. He was even daring enough to try the alligator. Of course he also had such fair favorites as foot long hotdogs & corn dogs. He went for the corn several times.
Kel walked around the fairgrounds. He found that some thing hadn’t changed. The ‘Olde Mill’ was where it always was, near the WCCO radio booth. Kel couldn’t resist taking a ride on the ‘Olde Mill.’ He couldn’t resist a ride on the carousel either. ‘Machinery Hill’ had changed some. There wasn’t as great a focus on farm equipment as there used to be. He found a car dealer’s booth at one end. He stopped to talk to one of the friendly, hard working salesmen. He wouldn’t forget the name Harold Chevrolet. He even attended services at the Crossroads Chapel, and took in the parade each day. He also took in some of the FREE ENTERTAINMENT at the BANDSHELL and HERITAGE SQUARE. The pair never left for the night until after the FIREWORKS were done.
Kel was often found at the meeting place. He was there so often that one afternoon a very attractive brunette approached him. She said her name was Donna and she had seen him at the booth several times. She said she was about to go on the air and asked him if he’d let her interview him. Kel agreed. Donna briefed him on how the interview would go. Donna got on the air and started her show. She brought Kel on a few minutes later. She asked him a lot of questions, like what brought him to the state fair, was he enjoying it where he was from and so forth. Kel mentioned that this wasn’t his first visit to the fair. Then she asked him about the previous visit and how the fair was different now compared to what it was like at that time. He told her about all the things he found different and said one of the things that was different is that this whole trip was all vacation. The first one had been part work. He said that as a resident, working state fair medical aid was a requirement, but that he was free to roam the fairgrounds when he was between shifts. He also added that there weren’t paramedics back then either. The interview lasted a while and Kel was enjoying it.
Teddy came along. Donna wrapped up the interview shortly thereafter. She thanked him and then she let him out of the studio. Kel joined Teddy.
“What did you think Teddy?”
Teddy grinned and shook his head. “I’m not surprised, Kel. You always were outgoing.”
“Yeah, but I rarely give interviews.”
Teddy was puzzled and asked him about that. Kel explained. Teddy asked, “Why did you give one then?”
Kel looked at Teddy, grinned and said “Because I like her.”
Teddy said “We’re supposed to meet my cousins for dinner tonight. I told them we’d meet them in the cattle barn.”
“Okay. Let’s go through the horse barn on the way.”
“Sure.” Kel wondered when the ‘Hippodrome’ became the ‘Coliseum.’ Teddy said that was changed many years ago. Kel nodded and said “Okay.”
They headed for the animal barns. They went west on Carnes then south on Ligget. Soon they were at the horse barn. They looked at all the horses. Kel talked to several of the owners. They both admired the white stallions.
They moved on to the cattle barn. They wandered around the barn until they found Teddy’s cousins. They talked a while. As they all started to leave, someone screamed. Kel turned and ran in the direction the scream came from.
“What happened ma’am?” Kel asked.
“My husband, he just grabbed his chest and collapsed!”
Kel dropped to his knees and started to examine the man. Without looking at the woman, Kel started CPR and said “I’m a doctor ma’am.”
Teddy asked “Need some help?”
“Yeah, have someone call medical aid then come help me here.”
Teddy sent someone to call for medical aid, then helped Kel with the CPR. Medical aid arrived within minutes. Kel briefed them on the situation as he and Teddy continued CPR. The medics started O2 and an EKG. The EKG showed V-Tach which quickly became V-Fib. The medics had to de-fib twice before getting a normal sinus rhythm.
While the medics were setting up the link to their base, Kel asked the man’s wife if he was diabetic. She shook her head no. Kel pulled an IV D5W from their drug box. The medics advised the doctor at Regions that there were doctors at the scene. The doctor at base said “10-4. Start an IV D5W and transport as soon as possible.”
Kel had the IV started by the time the medic said “10-4 Regions. IV D5W and transport.” The ambulance arrived in a short time. Kel rode in with the medics. There were no complications during the transport. When the ambulance arrived, the local doctors took over. Kel and the medics were asked to wait.
One of the paramedics turned to Kel and asked, “Are you hungry?”
“Yeah, I am.” Kel told him why he happened to be in the cattle barn at that moment.
“Dinner’s on us.” He said. His partner agreed. A short time later, they were eating. They had a nice chat during that time. One of the medics said to Kel, “You must do that all the time. You were a pro out there. I mean the way you took charge of the situation out there.”
Kel blushed and said, “If you mean working with paramedics, I do, do that all the time. I’m an E.R. doc out of Los Angeles County, California.”
Both medics said, “What you and your friend did in the field was a big help to us.”
“I was just doing my job.”
A half hour later the doctor came out.
“How’s he doing Doc?” asked one the medics.
“He’s doing fine. Now, tell me what happened out there.”
The first medic started “CPR was being performed when we arrived at the scene. We were told there were a pair of doctors there. We followed the instructions we were given at the scene. They were the ones doing the CPR.”
The doctor nodded. Then he looked at Kel and said, “I suppose this is one of the doctors that was at the scene?”
Before the paramedics could answer, Kel jumped in and answered that question. “Yes, I am.” Then he looked at the medics and the doctor and said, “I guess introductions are needed here.” Kel introduced himself to the local doctor and the 2 paramedics. They knew of his reputation in the field of Emergency medicine and said so. They had a nice chat.
Later, Teddy picked Kel up. When asked, all Kel said was “I’ll tell you tomorrow. Right now I just want to get some sleep.” Kel had no idea that he was being called a hero for what he did, and that word of what he did was already spreading through the fairgrounds like wildfire, even though he only did what needed to be done. He would be the first to say that he was just doing what needed to be done. He was humble about it.
Several days later, Kel finished his vacation and went home. About a month later, a package arrived for him. He had to sign for it.
“What’s in the package Kel?” Asked Dixie.
“Let’s find out.’ Kel opened the package. Inside was a letter from the wife of the man that had the heart attack, letters from the doctor and the 2 paramedics, a copy of his old Minnesota medical license in a frame and an honorary paramedic certification from the St. Paul program. There was also a letter explaining the last 2 items.
Dixie looked at each item. She asked him what happened on his vacation. When he told her, she asked “Why didn’t you say anything when you got back?” His answer was “Because, I only did what had to be done.”
Dixie just shook her head as he put everything back into the box and took it to his office. She knew that he didn’t go into medicine for the glory. If he had wanted that, he could’ve easily gone elsewhere for it. Instead, he was at a county hospital, making a real difference in people’s lives. That was all he ever wanted to do. That’s what drove him.
That night, as he went to bed, he thanked God for always putting him where he was needed most. That’s all he could ask for.
AUTHOR’S NOTES-
I
set the story in 1998 in order to make certain elements of it work. As for the heart attack in the cattle
barn, that really happened, but not in 1998. All fair locations are real. My
thanks to Bill Ward for letting me mention Harold Chevrolet in my story and to
the State Fair Info Department for their help.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
ON THE MN. STATE FAIR, HAROLD CHEVROLET OR K102, VISIT THE FOLLOWING LINKS:
2005 CMA MAJOR MARKET RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR!!!