ALLEN COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) — An usher at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum received recognition from county officials on Friday for helping a child who had started to choke at an event in late February.

The Allen County Board of Commissioners presented the Allen County Civil Service Award to Ed Reader for “being in the right place at the right time and using his training to save a child’s life.”

“At the end of the game, the child came back to him, hugged him and started crying while he said ‘thank you for saving my life,'” said Melanie Henkes Carney, executive vice president and general manager of the Coliseum.

Reader has worked at the Coliseum since 2002 and also previously served in the Army, where in 1961 he received training that included the Heimlich Maneuver, according to the Allen County Commissioners.

Carney said Reader and the child have plans to meet again at a Fort Wayne Komets game to share some food and drink together.

The Allen County Civil Service Award program started in 2015 to acknowledge and appreciate employee commitment to the county and its constituents.