Fate brings men together, miracle makes them friends
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By Jeffrey Hage jeff.hage@lee.net
Wednesday, December 22, 2004 10:28 AM CST
Bob Leidholdt was nervous as he stood outside the big, white house on Parkside Circle in Eau Claire Tuesday night.
He had thought about this moment night and day for 2 1/2 weeks.
Inside the house was Bob Reise. He, too, was nervous.
He was about to meet the man who, like the Good Samaritan, came to his aid Saturday, Dec. 4 when he suffered a massive heart attack at the Anderson Christmas tree lot on Rudolph Road in Eau Claire.
The doorbell rang, the door opened, and soon the men's wives were exchanging hugs. Leidholdt and Reise spoke no words at first, their feelings doing the talking. They simply exchanged handshakes.
A twist of fate began the process of connecting the men together forever, even though they had never formally met. Until Tuesday night, that is.
Reise looked into Leidholdt's eyes. He said a simple "thank you" wasn't enough to express his gratitude for what happened that Saturday morning. Leidholdt assured him it was.
Reise doesn't remember that Leidholdt played a role in saving his life. He doesn't remember bundling up in his big, down jacket and heavy boots to head out to the Christmas tree lot, either.
But Leidholdt remembers the vision of that down jacket that made the small-framed Reise look like a large man in the parking lot that morning.
"When you opened the door I didn't think that was you," Leidholdt said. "I was looking around for the man I helped in the parking lot that morning
Leidholdt preceded to give Reise and his wife a play-by-play account of his life-saving measures. You could see the horror come across their faces as they realized Reise was closer to the brink of death than they had ever imagined.
After an emotional introduction, the two families gathered at the kitchen table and carefully began building a relationship. They drank coffee that Reise apologized for making too strong, and shared stories about Leidholdt's upbringing near the shores of Lake Wissota.
The Reises shared pictures of their two children, while the Leidholdts shared an emotional card they received from Reise's son thanking one Bob for saving the life of another Bob.
Leidholdt also shared the disappointment that his employer abandoned a CPR program that he had taken few years back. He learned the steps necessary to help save a man's life and is concerned that his co-workers haven't had the same opportunities. Annual refresher courses would have made him more confident in the life-saving measures he undertook, too.
"Without it, I wouldn't have known what to do," he said.
And with the limited training he had in CPR, he was very concerned that he had missed a step or two.
"I think you did something right," Reise said. "I'm not arguing!"
As the families talked, a beautifully-decorated Christmas tree shined in the distance. It was the same tree that Reise had picked out on the tree lot, but left behind when tragedy struck. The Anderson tree farm had saved the tree and made arrangements to give it to the Reises free of charge, they said.
"I don't remember picking out the tree, but I didn't do too bad of a job, if I say so myself," Reise said.
He also hasn't done too bad of a job recognizing the importance of the special Christmas present his family received that Saturday morning.
"I want to try and thank all the people for what they've done, but thanks just doesn't do it," he said. "I just hope to stay around long enough to help somebody else, just like Bob helped me."
With that special first meeting behind them, the new friends prepared to part ways.
"I will never forget you," Reise told Leidholdt.
"I'll never forget you, either," Leidholdt said.
Reach Jeffrey Hage at jeff.hage@lee.net.
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