Graduate of FDNY-focused high school was inspired to join bravest after friend saved her dad’s life with CPR

One of the graduates of an FDNY-focused high school in Brooklyn said she was inspired to join the Bravest after watching a friend save her dad’s life with CPR — as she and dozens of other students got their diplomas Friday.

Desiree Ruiz, 17, said her father, Wilfredo, suddenly collapsed from a cardiac arrest while a friend was swinging by her family home to drop off a phone in April 2023.

The older boy, who was then a senior at the FDNY Highschool for Fire & Life Safety, quickly began giving him chest compressions.

“He saw my father on the floor in cardiac arrest and went straight into action,” she said.

“[He] definitely saved my dad’s life. Without 10 minutes of oxygen to the brain, you will brain dead. He stepped in at the right time,” she said. “That made such an impact on me.”