The quick actions of a 7-year-old saved her mother’s life.
Jordyn Norland, a Riverside Elementary School student, was getting ready for school Monday, Sept. 29, when her mom, Laura, began experiencing heart attack symptoms after getting out of the shower.
“She was laying down, and she told me to call 911…She told me to go unlock the door for the ambulance people,” said Jordyn, who was honored Friday at the school’s student of the month program. She was named the school’s junior officer of the month, received a challenge coin and a hero award from School Resource Officer Alisha Saal.
“The medical staff emphasized because of her quick actions her mom is alive today. We’re so proud of Jordyn,” Saal said.
After calling 911, Jordyn called her grandfather. Jordyn’s dad, Mike, was visiting family in Oregon on Monday and woke up in the early hours in the Pacific time zone to find about 15 missed phone calls.
“Without her, Laura may not have made it. She acted fast and saved her life,” said Mike Norland, who scrambled to get a quick return flight. Saal said she wasn’t surprised at Jordyn’s response.
“I know how sweet and caring she is,” said Saal who just returned from maternity leave Sept. 24.
Last year, Jordyn would search Saal out when she got out of her car to hug Saal, touch her belly and ask how Saal’s baby was doing.
“She truly has a beautiful heart,” she said.
As for Jordyn’s mom, she’s back home and resting and expected to make a full recovery and “hopefully feel better than she did before,“ Mike Norland said.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years. She’s won multiple Georgia Press Association awards, is the recipient of the 2018 Greater Augusta Arts Council’s media award and was named Augusta Magazine’s best local writer in 2024 and 2025. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
