June 4, 2025 — CHELMSFORD, MASS. In recognition of CPR and AED Awareness Week (June 1-7), ZOLL® Medical and Simon’s Heart announced today that they will be providing 32 youth organizations in cities across the U.S. with automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and training to respond to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), the leading cause of death among young athletes.
The initiative is part of ZOLL’s Anything Can Happen. Anyone Can Help.™ education campaign, featuring pro football player and SCA survivor Damar Hamlin. The 32 AEDs will be placed in community-based nonprofits, including 25 Boys & Girls Clubs.
“This is exactly what I’ve been fighting for—getting AEDs to the places and people who need them most,” said Hamlin, a 2024 inductee of Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Alumni Hall of Fame who credits his local Pittsburgh-area Club as life-changing.
Each organization receiving an AED was selected based on need and the absence of existing AED access, ensuring that youth organizations are better equipped to respond in the event of a cardiac emergency.
"Every young person deserves access to lifesaving resources,” said Alexis Simchak, Senior Program Director, Simon’s Heart. “Equipping youth organizations with AEDs isn’t just about being prepared for an emergency. It’s about building confidence, leadership, and community safety from the ground up.”
"ZOLL is delighted to make these donations, knowing that together with Simon’s Heart, we’re expanding the network of citizen first responders,” said Elijah White, President of ZOLL's Acute Care Technology division. “When an AED is nearby, anyone can help save a life. ZOLL AEDs provide real-time coaching and feedback to help bystanders to act decisively."
Each organization will receive a ZOLL AED 3®, complete with a backpack for portability. In addition, ZOLL will provide guidance on AED placement, maintenance, and educational resources to train staff, volunteers, and community members. The effort reinforces the “Chain of Survival,” empowering the public to recognize signs of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), call 911, begin CPR, and use an AED within minutes—actions that can dramatically increase the chances of survival.
“These AEDs will help protect our children and families and also educate our community that every bystander can make a difference,” said Michael Belcher, National Vice President of Child Safety and Quality Assurance Officer at Boys & Girls Clubs of America. “We’re proud to make Boys & Girls Clubs a place where safety and readiness go hand in hand.”
More than 100,000 sudden cardiac arrests happen in public each year. Yet, nearly half (46%) of Americans are surprised to learn that AEDs do more than deliver a shock, they provide real-time visual and audio instruction and feedback on CPR, empowering anyone, regardless of training, to step in and help save a life.
Launched in 2024 with pro football player Damar Hamlin, ZOLL’s Anything Can Happen. Anyone Can Help.™ campaign educates the public that AEDs aren’t just shock devices—they’re life-saving tools anyone can rely on in an emergency to help save a life. Learn more at AnyoneCanHelp.com.
ZOLL, an Asahi Kasei company, develops and markets medical devices and software solutions that help advance emergency care and save lives, while increasing clinical and operational efficiencies. With products for defibrillation and cardiac monitoring, circulation enhancement and CPR feedback, supersaturated oxygen therapy, data management, ventilation, therapeutic temperature management, and sleep apnea diagnosis and treatment, ZOLL provides a comprehensive set of technologies that help clinicians, EMS and fire professionals, as well as lay rescuers, improve patient outcomes in critical cardiopulmonary conditions. For more information, visit www.zoll.com.
SIMON’S HEART is a 501(c)(3) founded in memory of 3 month old Simon Sudman who died suddenly from an undetected heart condition. The organization is committed to a future in which parents and communities don’t lose children to detectable and treatable heart conditions. Simon's Heart raises awareness, provides education, and advocates for heart screenings, CPR education and the placement of AEDs where kids learn and play. Learn more at: www.simonsheart.org
For more than 160 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA.org) has provided a safe place for kids and teens to learn and grow. Clubs offer caring adult mentors, fun and friendship, and high-impact youth development programs on a daily basis during critical non-school hours. Boys & Girls Clubs programming promotes academic success, good character and leadership, and healthy lifestyles. Over 5,400 Clubs serve more than 3 million young people through Club membership and community outreach. Clubs are located in cities, towns, public housing and on Native lands throughout the country, and serve military families in BGCA-affiliated Youth Centers on U.S. military installations worldwide. The national headquarters is located in Atlanta. Learn more about Boys & Girls Clubs of America on Facebook and LinkedIn.
Copyright © 2025 ZOLL Medical Corporation. All rights reserved. ZOLL, AED 3, and Anything Can Happen. Anyone Can Help. are trademarks or registered trademarks of ZOLL Medical Corporation and/or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. Asahi Kasei is a registered trademark of Asahi Kasei Corporation.