Singer who went into cardiac arrest at Ramsey Uncle Giuseppe’s meets volunteer EMT who saved his life
Russ "Martone" Martorana met William Kelly at Madison Park Banquet Hall in Parlin after he left the hospital.
A singer who went into cardiac arrest during a performance met on Sunday the person who saved his life.
“Everybody says I’m a miracle,” said Russ “Martone” Martorana. “No, I'm the recipient of a miracle.”
Many around New Jersey know Martorana as an entertainer. He performs Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and other classic tunes.
Martorana suffered a heart attack and went into cardiac arrest while performing at Uncle Giuseppe's in Ramsey six weeks ago.
“I had no pulse, cardiac arrest,” Martorana said. “Two minutes earlier, I would have been gone.”
That’s when another shopper, volunteer EMT William Kelly, stepped in and performed CPR, saving Martorana’s life.
“I had no plans to be there that day,” Kelly said. “It was just circumstance. When we’re put in a situation where we need to do it, most of us jump and do it without even thinking.”
Martorana doesn’t remember the day at all.
“Three days later, I woke up in the hospital,” Martorana said. “The only thing that I was told - my wife said, ‘Before you went to work, you weren't yourself.’ My wife even asked the doctor, ‘Should I tell my kids to come home?’ He said, ‘He's very critical. Tell them to come home.’ And somehow, I made it.”
The families met for the first time in Parlin on Sunday, out of the hospital to celebrate.
“I'm feeling so good that it's a little scary,” Martorana said. “I have my energy. I'm walking, I'm eating, I'm talking, I was even singing a little bit. It's great to look at the sky, like the song - ‘It’s a Beautiful World.’ For the first time, you realize what you wouldn't have had.”
Both families stressed the importance of CPR training, saying it is very easy to find local training on the Red Cross website.
