Police Officer Running 15K Race In Full SWAT Gear Pauses His Marriage Proposal At The Finish Line To Perform CPR On A Woman Having A Heart Attack

Nov 13, 2019 by apost team

Police officers understand that doing their duty often takes a great deal of sacrifice. As a police officer, you’re on duty all the time, working hard to ensure the safety of your community. A police officer in Chicago, Illinois recently went above and beyond the call of duty on what was also one of the biggest days of his life.

Sergeant Mike Nowacki is a medic on the Chicago Police Department’s SWAT team. A 19-year veteran of the force, Sergeant Nowacki recently decided to run the Allstate Hot Chocolate 15K in his SWAT gear, including his helmet. As his gear weighs about 50 pounds, it was quite the feat of physical prowess to undertake such a long race carrying all of his SWAT paraphernalia.

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In planning out his 15K, Sergeant Nowacki decided that he would make the day extra special by asking his girlfriend, Officer Erin Gubala, to marry him. The timing couldn’t be more perfect as, in addition to being at the race to support him, Officer Gubala would also be on duty, protecting spectators at the finish line.

Just as Sergeant Nowacki was about to finish the race, he heard the all too familiar sounds of a woman in distress in the crowd. Making his way through the spectators, Sergeant Nowacki found a group of people calling for a medic to give aid to a woman in cardiac arrest. Thankfully, Sergeant Nowicki had his radio with him and immediately called for an ambulance. As he waited for paramedics to arrive, Sergeant Nowacki and a firefighter from Indiana performed CPR, saving the woman’s life. Meanwhile, Officer Gubala, shocked to hear Nowacki's voice over the radio, monitored the two rescuers from the finish line.

After the woman was brought to the hospital and he finished the race, Sergeant Nowacki knew that it was time for his proposal. Speaking with reporters from WGNTV, Officer Gubala remembers how Sergeant Nowacki ran up to her and got down on one knee with a ring his hand. Officer Gubala readily accepted Sergeant Nowacki's proposal and the two went home to recover from their whirlwind day and plan out their future together.

What do you think of how Sergeant Nowacki proposed to Officer Gubala after running the 15K and saving the woman’s life? Do you have any unique or interesting proposal stories?