Safety Spotlight: Nick McGrady Saves a Life
April 4, 2023
Our HVAC technicians often find themselves in situations that require immediate response. Usually, those emergencies occur with our grocery store or fast-food restaurant customers. However, our skilled and caring techs are ready for anything — even emergencies on the side of the road.
In January, Nick McGrady, an eight-year U.S. Navy veteran and a CoolSys Service Tech 4—HVAC in Orlando, Florida, was driving home after finishing his calls for the day. His dispatcher reached out to ask if he could do a follow-up call for a customer in the opposite direction of his residence, so Nick turned around and headed toward the job. As he was driving, he came upon a vehicle on the side of the highway with its hazard lights on. As he pulled over to assist, he saw people clearly in distress on the shoulder — and a person lying on their back on the ground.
Preserving a Precious Life
That person turned out to be an unresponsive 16-year-old boy. His distraught mother told Nick they had just left a hospital, where her son had undergone testing for a medical condition. With that information, Nick sprang into action, asking the mother to call 911 and performing chest compressions while giving updates to the 911 dispatcher.
An off-duty law enforcement officer stopped to help, and he and Nick continued CPR. Just as the ambulance arrived, the boy began breathing again. Simply put, Nick helped saved a life when many others on the road that evening may have just kept driving.
A Life of Service to Others
After completing his service in the Navy and settling in Idaho, Nick had planned to attend school and find a profession in the civilian world. His neighbor was a CoolSys technician who spoke highly of the company and the HVAC-R profession. Nick saw an opportunity that was too good to pass up, so he took the leap, enrolled in an HVAC education program then joined CoolSys in August 2018.
Nick’s heroic actions in January may have come from his parenting perspective. He and his wife have three children, an 18-month-old son, a three-year-old son and a nine-year-old daughter. His three-year-old has been diagnosed with epilepsy.
Last July, the family visited Orlando for a second opinion on their child’s medical care. During that time, their son had a serious medical episode, and physicians advised he was in no condition to fly home to Idaho. Nick and his wife saw the opportunity to relocate their family to Orlando, closer to a superior medical system to support their child. As he did when he became a tech, Nick took another leap of faith and transferred to a Florida CoolSys branch.
“Nick has been an excellent technician for CoolSys, serving our customers with professionalism and urgency,” says his manager, Mike Williams. “Nick is always willing to help wherever he is needed, and he brings a positive, energetic attitude to the team.”
More CoolSys Heroics
Since we have such awesome techs, it’s not surprising that Nick’s heroic act is just one among many stories of how our techs go above and beyond to serve our communities.
- In August 2022, a CoolSys technician in Utah helped his neighbors to safety during a house fire.
- After Hurricane Ian struck Florida in September 2022, CoolSys employees sprang into action to help our customers and community.
- In May 2022, a CoolSys apprentice in Wisconsin assisted a man who had fallen and struck his head at an Aldi grocery store.
Technicians like Nick and so many others around the country are what set CoolSys apart from the competition. Our company is successful because of our wonderful employees, who have the courage and commitment to do what is right, stepping in to help when it matters most.