Boston Celtics honor off-duty nurse who saved man's life after he collapsed at Shrewsbury gymnastics meet

O'Connor Heroes Among Us

UMass pediatric nurse Amy O'Connor was awarded the "Heroes Among Us" award this week after she saved a man's life at a gymnastics tournament.

(Matthew Blanchette)

The Boston Celtics honored UMass Memorial pediatric nurse pediatric nurse Amy O'Connor, who last month saved a man's life after he collapsed at a gymnastics meet in Shrewsbury.

At the meet, O'Connor had sent her 11-year-old daughter to pick her up a Sprite, a drink that O'Connor hasn't had in years. But thanks to that serendipitous craving, Riley Olander walked to the concession stand just in time to see Joe Flak enter what appeared to be cardiac arrest.

Olander alerted O'Connor, who immediately ran back to Flak and began administering life-saving CPR.

It was that selfless act that landed O'Connor a "Heroes Among Us" award at TD Garden Tuesday night.

"I've since been overwhelmed with the kindness and generosity shown to me in honor of saving this man's life," O'Connor wrote in a statement. "I am truly humbled to be the recipient of the Heroes Among Us award from such a world class organization."

The "Heroes Among Us" award was created in 1997 by the Boston Celtics to recognize community heroes. As part of the award ceremony, O'Connor was invited onto the court for a photo shoot with some players and tour the offices of the organization.

O'Connor had just become a serious Celtics fan this season, attending games to watch the Celtics play Atlanta, Minnesota and Indiana.

"This award from such a well-respected organization is extra special to me because ironically enough I became a huge Celtics fan this season," O'Connor said. "Prior to this season I've only attended one game, however this season I was lucky enough to attend three regular season Celtics games."

Joe Flak said at a press conference after the incident that O'Connor was a true, everyday hero.

"She is an example of what true heroes care about. It's not sports figures, it's not politicians. It's people who go out of their way to help somebody else when they don't have to," Flak said.

For O'Connor, it's just part of the job.

"Putting the needs and wants of others is something that truly comes naturally to me and something I can be found to be doing both inside and out of work," O'Connor said.

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