Senate Resolution No. 416

BY: Senator KAMINSKY

COMMENDING Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz upon the
occasion of their designation as recipients of a
Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an
individual by the New York State Senate

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to recognize and
commend the caring concern and heroic acts of individuals who take
prompt and appropriate action in emergency situations, nobly risking
their own lives in an effort to preserve the life of another; and

WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to
commend Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz upon the occasion of their designation
as recipients of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an
individual by the New York State Senate; and

WHEREAS, The New York State Senate Liberty Medal was established by
Resolution and is awarded to individuals who have merited special
commendation for exceptional, heroic, or humanitarian acts on behalf of
their fellow New Yorkers; and

WHEREAS, On Sunday, October 7, 2018, brothers and Certified EMTs,
Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz were driving home from a New York Jets game
northbound on New Jersey Route 17, when they noticed a vehicle on the
side of the road, having crashed into the median; and

WHEREAS, After pulling over, Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz quickly ran
to the car and noticed the driver was unconscious and unresponsive; the
two brothers, along with other medical professionals who passed by,
broke a window and extricated the patient from the vehicle; and

WHEREAS, Yoni Sacknovitz immediately began chest compressions while
Ariel Sacknovitz oxygenated the man with a bag-valve mask; several
minutes later, a paramedic unit arrived with a defibrillator and
administered a shock, causing the patient, who had suffered a heart
attack, to regain consciousness; due to the astute actions of Yoni and
Ariel, the man survived; and

WHEREAS, Twenty year-old Yoni Sacknovitz worked for Senior Care
Emergency Medical Services and studies biology at Yeshiva University;
his 22 year-old brother, Ariel, is a Business Intelligence and Marketing
Analytics major at the Syms School of Business at the University, and is
a volunteer for Hatzalah of Washington Heights, New York; both men plan
to attend medical school after graduation; and

WHEREAS, Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz, in their spontaneous and heroic
acts, have so aptly demonstrated their character and compassion for the
welfare of others; personifying, by virtue of their action, the
collective concern of ordinary citizens across the community of New York
State who voluntarily respond without thought of danger or reward when
others are in need of help; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz upon the occasion of their designation
as recipients of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an
individual by the New York State Senate; and be it further

RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to Yoni and Ariel Sacknovitz.