Lee Trawick, Reporter2@riverbendnews.org
Stephanie Cauley has been battling cancer over the last year. Although it has been a struggle for her, her nine-year-old daughter, Olivia Cauley, has been by her side. While most nine-year-old little girls are busy playing with dolls, Olivia is getting used to battling cancer's effects on her mother. No matter how much one grows or adapts to a particular circumstance, no one is ever prepared to find their loved one unconscious on the floor and having to call 911.
On Saturday, May 14, Stephanie stood up to walk to the kitchen from the living room when her body gave way. Stephanie fell, hitting her head and falling unconscious. It is unclear how long she laid on the floor when Olivia heard something that caused her to get up and check it out. Olivia left her bedroom and began looking for her mother. After checking several rooms first, she found her mother lying unconscious on the floor behind the couch. Olivia sprang into action and first called a family friend to arrange for someone to pick her up, because she knew the ambulance would take her mother to the hospital. She quickly hung up the phone and then called 911. Suwannee County Dispatcher Cheryl Gross-Tillman was the one who answered the call. Olivia informed Tillman of the situation, readily relaying her mother's address and previous medical history. When Tillman asked if she was breathing, Olivia responded with “yes.” Olivia proceeded to inform Tillman that her mother had fallen and there was a knot on her mother's head from the fall, but it was not bleeding. Tillman later said she was amazed at how calm Olivia was acting The phone call lasted almost six minutes before help arrived. All the while, Olivia remained calm and collected as Tillman continued to ask vital questions that would allow the emergency medical personnel to assist her mother better when they arrived. Stephanie was beginning to wake up about the time emergency medical personnel arrived. With Stephanie's blood pressure dangerously low, she was transported to Lake City Medical Center.
Stephanie returned home later that evening after being discharged from Lake City Medical Center after just five hours due to full occupancy. However, things again took a turn for the worst at 2 a.m. on Sunday, May 15, when Stephanie got up to get water. There, she fell a second time; only, this time, she was near death before emergency personnel arrived. Stephanie had again lost unconscious without anyone knowing. When she woke up, she was too weak to get up. Luckily she had her Apple Watch on that she could access to tell it to call 911. When emergency medical personnel arrived on the scene, they were shocked to see that the Lake City Medical Center had released her earlier that day. They wasted no time, as her condition was deteriorating rapidly. The decision was made to activate Life Flight and transport her to Shand's Hospital at the University of Florida. She was admitted and remained there for four days before she was stable enough to be released.
While the events of those 12 hours may have been stressful and life-threatening, what Stephanie and Olivia would like to take away from the events is the importance of knowing your home address. "Olivia saved valuable, critical time by knowing our home address and remaining calm to relay everything to the dispatcher,” Stephanie said. Olivia and her mother had just moved less than a month before the incident on May 14, yet she was still aware of the importance knowing her surroundings and her address.
While she may not wear a cape and may not fly around, she is a superhero in her mother's eyes. This claim is further backed by Suwannee County Sheriff Sam St. John. On Tuesday, May 24, Olivia got a surprise when Sheriff St. John and Tillman showed up at her school at Suwannee Springcrest Elementary. While Olivia was excited to see everyone there, the real excitement came from Sheriff St. John and dispatcher Tillman, as they got to meet the young superhero that remained so calm and saved her mother’s life. Sheriff St. John presented Olivia with a plaque that certifies Olivia as an official Superhero.