Collin Gates, 14, had an undiagnosed congenital heart defect that led to cardiac arrest
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
NEED TO KNOW
- Tamara Gates performed CPR on her son Collin after he collapsed at track practice and was unresponsive for 15 minutes
- Collin was diagnosed with a rare congenital heart condition and underwent lifesaving open-heart surgery days after the incident
- Tamara plans to become a CPR instructor to encourage more parents and students to learn the lifesaving skills
Tamara Gates loved working at her son's school. Although she taught sixth grade and he was in eighth at Conyers Middle School in Georgia, the two saw each other all the time.
On Feb. 7, 2026, Collin, 14, popped into his mom's classroom. “He came the whole day and hugged me,” says Tamara, 36, also mom to R.J. Williams, 16, Wynter Walker, 12 and Johnathan Wellmaker Jr, 9 months. “Every time, he hugged me like he had never hugged me before.”
After school, they both headed to track practice, where Tamara served as an assistant coach for her son's team.
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
But at practice, Collin wasn't feeling well. He told the head coach he was tired and needed water.
All of a sudden, Tamara heard a commotion. "His teammates were screaming my name and saying he collapsed,” she recalls. "I ran over to where he was."
She saw the head coach cradling her son, trying to hold his head up while opening his mouth as if to let air in.
“My immediate thought was, ‘Something's not right,' ” she says.
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
Once she saw that Collin wasn't breathing, Tamara began doing chest compressions. She was CPR-certified and had just completed her annual refresher certification course the week before. "I was rubbing his chest in a circular motion. I was like, 'Breathe for your mama, breathe for your mama.' "
With the help of another parent, she administered CPR while the coach called 9-1-1. Tamara remembers thinking the ambulance was taking too long. Collin was unresponsive for 15 minutes.
When a faint pulse returned, they decided to take him to the hospital themselves.
The coach picked up Collin and carried him to the car. Tamara sat in the back seat with her son. “I was praying over my baby,” she says. “I said, 'Lord, my baby shall live and not die.' I could not stop praying.”
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
As soon as they got to the hospital, he was airlifted to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta's Arthur M. Blank Hospital, where he was diagnosed with anomalous aortic origin of a coronary artery (AAOCA), a rare congenital heart condition where both coronary arteries arise from the same aortic sinus. The condition can put children at risk for sudden cardiac arrest, which is what happened to Collin.
“His mom was one of the first responders — which is very rare,” says Collin's pediatric cardiologist Dr. Robert Whitehill, Medical Director of the Electrophysiology Program at Children's. “That's a nightmare for any parent to even think about.”
The teen was on life support for three days and had open-heart surgery a week later. Surgeons moved the blood vessel that fed the left side of Collin's heart and reattached it to its proper starting point on the main artery.
Four days later, he was home.
Whitehill tells PEOPLE the heart condition is not usually detectable until it is too late.
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
Collin, he says, was an "incredibly healthy kid" who'd undergone athlete physicals and pediatrician well visits for years without any indication of a heart defect. Even if he'd had an electrocardiogram (EKG) prior to the cardiac arrest, the test results would have likely been normal, Whitehill explains.
These days, Collin says he has no recollection of the incident. But when his mom tells the story, “I get teary eyed and emotional,” he says.
He does recall waking up in the hospital. “I was so confused,” he says. “I was worried I wasn't going to play sports again.”
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
But just last week, Whitehill cleared him to return to football and track. “You can imagine how big his smile was,” he says.
Collin also had the opportunity to finish his eighth-grade year online and even went to prom with friends.
Tamara says she's grateful that she was able to help save Collin.
“I thank God that he gave me the ability to help save my child's life,” she says. “I still cry at night and reflect on how good God has been to Collin. He's really a miracle.”
Tamara plans to become a certified CPR instructor and hopes more parents and student athletes get trained in the lifesaving technique.
Credit: Courtesy of Tamara Gates
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Whitehill also believes the knowledge is crucial. He serves as Medical Director of Project S.A.V.E. a local branch of Project Adam, a community outreach organization that equips people to be prepared for a cardiac emergency.
Whitehill says he hopes to work with Collin and Tamara Gates to train more students and adults in CPR at the junior high.
He stresses the importance of preparedness. “Even with the best medical tests and most modern screening tools, things are still going to happen. And that's why we still need to be ready.”
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