SaveStation Provides 24/7 Public Access to Life-Saving Defibrillator

Matt’s Mission, a nonprofit raising awareness of sudden cardiac arrest and funds to donate automated external defibrillators, has added its fourth AED in Winter Garden.

Joe and Andrea Cobb, along with their son Matt, created the nonprofit after Matt Cobb suffered from sudden cardiac arrest while at work in 2020. He was 20 years old and healthy, but even then, the doctors gave him a 50% chance of waking up.

Luckily, he survived, but unfortunately, that’s not always the case.

Located at Veterans Memorial Park, 420 S. Park Ave., Winter Garden, the new AED was placed in front of the softball field inside a SaveStation, which is monitored, ventilated and illuminated. It is only a few feet away from the pickleball courts, as well.

It was dedicated to the Anderson family, who lost their 10-year-old son, Sean Anderson, to sudden cardiac arrest in 2004. At the time of his cardiac arrest, an AED was not available for more than 10 minutes, which severely decreased his chances of survival.

Joe Cobb said people can read Sean Anderson’s story on the SaveStation, allowing people to understand sudden cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time. His story spreads awareness.

“We’re super grateful for Matt’s Mission for honoring our son and placing a device where a lot of people — children, teens, young adults and older adults — gather and that it’s available 24/7,” Sean’s mother, Martha Anderson, said. “That’s super important, because sometimes, buildings or facilities can have an AED, but after normal business hours, it’s not accessible.”