An Oakland County boy is working hard to raise money to purchase a life-saving device for the Howell Area Fire Department.

9-year-old Lucas Vetter of Rose Township says that on a recent tour of the department’s newly expanded main station, he got to see a hands-free CPR machine in action. While the device is called a LUCAS Chest Compression System, he said it wasn’t the name that drew his attention, but rather seeing how efficiently it performed its task.

After seeing the system in action, Lucas went home and used a marker to draw up a business plan on a piece of construction paper to raise the $16,000 needed to purchase one of the devices. The Howell department currently has one such machine, but is hoping to have one installed in each of its four stations.

Lucas’ mother Kerry says she and her husband were very impressed by his attention to detail and determination to raise the money. Lucas recently spoke with representatives from the county’s various Rotary groups as well as a local accounting firm. So far he’s raised $500 and is hoping he can eventually reach his goal, although he says every dollar counts.

To help in his effort, Lucas has been using a demo machine that was given to him by Stryker, which manufactures the devices. Anyone interested in donating can contact Kerry Vetter at 248-767-0511 and kerrygvetter@gmail.com. (JK)