Jonesboro Chick-fil-A employee performs Heimlich maneuver on choking 1-year-old

JONESBORO, Ark. (KAIT) - A Chick-fil-A employee who had been on the job about two months performed the Heimlich maneuver on a 1-year-old girl who stopped breathing at the restaurant last week, the child’s mother said.

Naomi Boone was eating a chicken nugget at the Turtle Creek Chick-fil-A in Jonesboro during lunch when she began choking. Her mother, Nykeriea Boone, said they had been playing peek-a-boo moments earlier.

“She was choking for about three minutes, and then she went unresponsive and started turning colors,” Nykeriea Boone said.

Boone said she tried to stay calm so she could help her daughter.

“I was trying not to panic and stay calm so I could help her. But as she started turning colors, I began to freak out. It’s like, I didn’t know what to do,” she said.

Danielle Sturgeon, a Chick-fil-A employee, went to help.

“So I was worried and so I went over. I was standing right over there. And I looked and I saw a little girl upside down and I was, like, freaking out,” Sturgeon said.

Sturgeon said she began praying.

“So I just started praying like, ‘God, like help me. What do I do?’ And then I think the lady said something about a Heimlich maneuver and I didn’t think — I just picked her up and I started doing it. And she started foaming at the mouth but then she woke up,” Sturgeon said.

Sturgeon said she learned the Heimlich maneuver from a video she saw a few years ago.

“I saw a video on it like a few years back. That was it. And so I really just acted,” she said.

Chick-fil-A owners Tyler and Taylor Mitchell honored Sturgeon on Wednesday.

Tyler Mitchell said team members told the owners about the incident afterward.

“So after the moment happened, our team had reached out and kind of made us aware of what was going on and told us that one of our team members had stepped up,” he said.

Taylor Mitchell said the restaurant aims to make an impact on each customer.

“I would just add that every person that walks into our door, they matter. And we, as Chick-fil-A, we try to make an impact on every single person that walks through our doors, because we truly want our business to be a lighthouse in our community,” she said.

Tyler Mitchell said Sturgeon went beyond the restaurant’s standard.

“We want to treat everyone with honor, dignity, and respect. And she found that moment to go above and beyond, and she was able to meet that need for our guests,” he said.

Nykeriea Boone thanked those who helped her daughter.

“We really appreciate the Chick-fil-A crew. You guys were awesome that day — from the medics, the ambulance, the police officers, and even just customers in the store eating. You guys were awesome,” she said.

Boone said nurses later came to the family’s home to give them a CPR lesson. The family is now signing up for full CPR classes, and Boone is urging other parents to do the same.

People can find CPR classes by entering their ZIP code on the American Red Cross website. The next in-person class in Jonesboro is Saturday from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.

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