This year, when Stacy Yentz of Peraton joined her team for the Heart Walk, the mission behind the event was more personal to her than she could have ever imagined. Last November, Stacy’s mother, Gerri, was diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation (AFib). What initially seemed like a manageable diagnosis escalated quickly. Just two weeks later, Gerri was admitted to the hospital with fluid gathered in her legs and lungs. Doctors treated her with diuretics and a cardioversion to clear the fluids and stabilize her heart. She was expected to be discharged shortly after. She told Stacy and her siblings to go home. Hours later, she had a heart attack and went into cardiac arrest. Her brain hemorrhaged and she ended up in an induced coma. Gerri tragically passed away in the hospital on November 26, 2024.
“My mom was only 78,” reflected Stacy. “It’s hard for me to believe that it was her time, and it’s especially painful knowing her own mother, my grandmother, died of a heart attack. Her experience is a critical reminder to take your heart health seriously and to pay attention to your symptoms.”
In early 2025, the Yentz family experienced another shocking heart event. One afternoon, Stacy received a series of escalating calls about her daughter Hailey: from the cross-country coach, then the athletic director, then the Greenville Police Department.
A senior at East Carolina University (ECU) at the time, Hailey Yentz was a lifelong runner, competing on the track and cross-country team throughout her college career. One day in February, after a cross-training session made her feel lightheaded, a symptom she didn’t think much about, she started a weight training session. Soon after, she passed out.
It turns out, Hailey’s heart had stopped. Her ECU athletic trainers and teammates sprung into action, calling 911, securing the closest AED and starting CPR. In the 10 minutes until emergency responders arrived, bystander CPR kept Hailey’s heart beating and an AED provided four shocks to her heart to restore its rhythm. Thanks to how those critical seconds and minutes unfolded, she survived.
Hailey was transported to the East Carolina Heart Institute at ECU Health Medical Center, where testing eventually revealed that Hailey was living with a rare form of cardiomyopathy. With this diagnosis, Hailey and her family learned that her lifestyle would change completely. A team of six medical professionals delivered the news: running and any form of high-intensity exercise were out. Hailey would need a dual lead pacemaker and implantable cardioverter-defibrillator, and eventually she might need a heart transplant. At just 21, Hailey’s lifelong love of athletics was taken away and her future felt uncertain.
But Hailey, Stacy and the Yentz family have taken these harrowing experiences and turned them into something powerful. Just months after her cardiac arrest and diagnosis, Hailey signed on for the Greenville, NC, Heart Walk as a team coach. Stacy, a change management manager at Peraton, also got involved with the Heart Walk in the Greater Washington Region as part of Peraton’s company team, sharing how her mother and daughter’s stories were her motivation for getting involved.
Hailey has made it her mission to share her story and call-to-action. Since her cardiac arrest, she’s been on something of an education tour. She’s shared her story with both students and staff at Prince William County Public Schools, the ECU cheerleading squad and at the Blue Ridge Running Camp. She also went on a tailgate tour with an AED company to raise awareness about the importance of knowing where AEDs are located.
This May, Hailey graduated from ECU a much different person than she was when she started. She decorated her graduation cap with a reference to that critical February day. That same month, she also took the stage at the ECU Athletic Goldspys award ceremony to accept the Pirate PRIDE Award, commemorating her perseverance, resilience, inspiration, determination and commitment to excellence. She received a standing ovation.
After losing her main hobby of running, Hailey has leaned into her new role as an educator, and this includes a passion for writing and journalism. As a reporter early in her career, she’s been embraced by the local journalism community. She’s also channeling her story into journalism, poetry and an eventual vision for writing a book about her heart journey.
“After my cardiac arrest, I’ve found acceptance in what I call the ‘heart community’ of people whose lives have been touched by heart disease,” said Hailey. “I’m proud to have turned the worst thing that happened in to my life’s purpose. Telling my story is rewarding every time. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to take action, and don’t worry about doing the wrong thing. Take just a minute to learn CPR and locate the AEDs at your gyms, workplaces and other public spaces. Thanks to all of the people who came together and took action that day in the gym, I’m still here today, and I hope my story will save even more lives.”
Stacy, Hailey and the whole Yentz family, including Haileys’ sister Lindsay, who is a cardiac nurse, are on a mission. They’re prioritizing their own heart health in a whole new way and spreading the word with others. The whole family sees cardiologists, and Stacy diligently tracks her heart health indicators. People with similar experiences frequently reach out to Stacy and Hailey for camaraderie and support. And they have a few important messages for anyone who will listen: take a moment to learn CPR; know where the AEDs are; and take your heart health seriously — don’t ignore symptoms.
“I truly believe that my mom, Gerri, was Hailey’s guardian angel on that fateful day. I felt like she was letting us know ‘God isn’t done with Hailey yet,’” said Stacy. “Knowing that heart disease has touched my grandmother, my mother, and now my daughter, it’s my mission to spread the word about the lifesaving power of taking action.”
Take one minute to learn hands-only CPR today at cpr.heart.org.