North Dakota State University police officer Chris Potter has seen a lot in the past 20 years. He always remembers his “firsts”, and September 25, 2012 was one of these occasions. He and a fellow officer were making rounds around downtown Fargo when they heard on their scanner a report of someone having a seizure two blocks away. Adriana Norberg, an 18-year old student at NDSU, had gone into cardiac arrest during a swing dance class. Two women were performing CPR on her but let Potter take over. He knew that he had to keep going in order to get oxygen to Norberg’s brain. Minutes later, paramedics arrived and set up equipment and a defibrillator. They took over and took Norberg to the local hospital where she was fitted with a pace maker.
But perhaps what makes this story even more amazing is that Norberg turned out to be the daughter of Brian Norberg, a sergeant at the sheriff’s department. “There was just something real purposeful about that,” Potter said. “I would just hope that if my daughter ended up in the same position, that it would be the same way.” Saving the life of another officer’s child gave even more meaning to Potter’s heroic act.
