SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Sixteen-year-old Sofia Montoya has always felt at home on stage, a passion that blossomed from a life-changing experience.
Montoya, an active 8-year-old who loved basketball and playing tag, suddenly collapsed one day. "I was sitting down and I just passed out. They saw my lips and face turning blue," she said.
Montoya suffered a cardiac arrest. “I was down for around 8 minutes without good quality CPR because no one was CPR or AED (automated external defibrillator) trained,” she said.
Her school didn’t have an automated external defibrillator, leaving her to wait for emergency crews. Fortunately, an off-duty officer nearby heard the call on the radio and came to help.
She was flown to the hospital, where doctors discovered a rare heart defect. Montoya spent five days in a coma, hooked up to a ventilator.
As soon as she woke up, she faced the challenge of relearning basic tasks. "I had to walk the hospital floor with a walker. I had to relearn how to tell time how to count," she said.
This journey inspired Montoya to help others.
Montoya and her mom joined the American Heart Association in Washington, D.C., urging lawmakers to support funding for AEDs in schools.
An AED is used to help those experiencing sudden cardiac arrest. “It's all about providing funding for schools so they can afford AEDs," Montoya said. "AEDs are around $12,000 to $30,000 and you have to keep the maintenance up for them.”
Montoya said she plans to continue being an advocate for heart patients while pursuing a performing arts career.
“I know I have a purpose to be here ... and I was lucky. Using what happened to me to push forward and a reason to start working hard.”
