Blog Posts

In November, Sam Palacio was finishing his workout at Sunshine Fitness’s Planet Fitness location in Palm Bay, Florida, when just a few feet away Mike DuBois suffered a massive heart attack. 

Palacio jumped into action, performing CPR while the location’s manager retrieved the AED. Once the AED was no longer applicable, Palacio, a donor services team leader and phlebotomist with OneBlood, again conducted CPR until paramedics arrived.  

Sunshine Fitness certifies staff in CPR annually, along with providing AED training, for situations just like this one. “We put the safety, health and well-being of our members first,” said Lynne Knowles, assistant to the vice president of operations. “We ensure emergency personnel are called regardless of the situation to have the member checked out and to give them the option of seeking further emergency treatment. Our members come first, and we want to make sure they are safe and happy.” 

Upon arrival at the hospital, DuBois underwent surgery where it was discovered he had a 100 percent blockage of an artery to his heart. A stent was inserted to clear the blockage.  

During his recovery, Dubois began seeking out the man who had saved his life. DuBois was able to track down Palacio through his best friend who is a regular blood donor at the bloodmobile where Palacio works. In April, OneBlood brought the two men together to reconnect. 

With plans to recognize the two men this summer, Knowles said the incident embodies fully the culture and atmosphere of Sunshine Fitness and PF. “Our culture is to develop friendships and put our members first and create an atmosphere where our staff are taking care of members and our members are taking care of members,” she said. “Everyone knows each other by their first name. This is somewhere a member can come in and feel comfortable and not feel judged. It truly is the kindness and compassion of the Judgement Free Zone.” 

Earlier this year, United PF Partners added two new clubs to its portfolio, bringing its total to 124 locations across 10 states.  

This spring, Kansas City, Missouri, and Rostraver Township, Pennsylvania, each welcomed a new, 18,000–square–foot Planet Fitness® club to its community complete with a grand celebration. 

On May 7, during the Kansas City grand–opening celebration, city leaders, including the mayor, Congressmen and councilmen, and staff of Greater Kansas City, joined in for the ribbon cutting and a check presentation of $5,000 to the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Kansas City.  

In addition, United PF Partners held an open house event for the community on May 11. United PF Partners invited the immediate neighborhoods to participate in an instructor-led workout or simply use the club for free that day. The open house was complete with free barbecue from Gates Bar-B-Q, kid’s activities and performances by the local Marching Cobras drill team in the parking lot. Hot 103 Jamz! pumped up the crowd and provided giveaways, including Mary J. Blige and Nas tickets, along with station-branded giveaways.  

“The event was a big success and allowed us to cement ourselves as part of the community,” said Erin Tuller, senior marketing coordinator for UPF. “For this club, it was very important to leverage a relationship with a local PR firm, Phillips-West. They had a history of promoting similar business openings in the neighborhood. We wanted to be sure that we did not inadvertently alienate any of the immediate neighborhood groups, associations, chambers, etc. Phillips-West helped us determine which chambers would have the most impact for our club as well as navigate our immersion into the community.” 

On April 11, during the grand–opening celebration of the Rostraver Township location, United PF Partners presented a $5,000 donation to the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Laurel Region and had a ribbon–cutting ceremony, which included representatives from the Big Brothers Big Sisters along with staff of the Greater Rostraver Chamber of Commerce.  

“We focus on creating a space where everyone in the community feels accepted and respected. We were happy to partner and take part in promoting the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of the Laurel Region, whose values truly align with our initiatives here at Planet Fitness,” said Gary Williams, regional director of United PF Partners. “We are very excited and thankful to have been welcomed to the Rostraver community with open arms.” 

With opening new clubs comes little hiccups here and there, and United PF Partners ran into a small problem with naming the club. “Historically, the area had been known as Belle Vernon. However, the community had been wanting its own identity separate from Belle Vernon and was in the middle of lobbying the state and U.S. Postal Service to officially change the name to Rostraver Township,” said Williams. “We decided to go with what our member community identified with most strongly. Welcome, PF Rostraver!” 

On Dec. 12, team members from National Fitness Partners’ Statesville, North Carolina, location were recognized during the first annual ICEMS Awards Ceremony.

Recipients for the awards were selected by their Iredell County peers for their emergency medical services, and Planet Fitness team members were recognized for their heroic efforts on two separate occasions.

In June of 2018, a member was working out at the Statesville PF when he fell off the stair climber due to cardiac arrest. Club manager Chris Seddon began CPR and utilized the AED before EMS arrived. In September of the same year, a custodian noticed an unconscious member in the free weight area and notified team members immediately. Seddon began performing CPR while several other team members prepared an AED machine for operation. Once shocks were emitted, the member regained consciousness before EMS arrived at the club.

“It’s extremely important to be properly trained to handle these types of emergencies,” said Seddon. “It makes the difference in whether someone lives or dies. Having that knowledge speaks highly of the facility and makes people feel comfortable going to a facility that they know has the CPR/AED qualifications.”

National Fitness Partners requires all new hires to be trained in CPR/AED within their first month on the job. Once team members have been certified, they are required to reinstate their certification every two years.

“It felt amazing to be recognized for our efforts,” said Seddon. “There was a standing ovation when PF employees were recognized, as we were the only civilians that were honored for the award. The team is very proud of this honor and feels very appreciated.”

Since the September incident, the member continues to come and work out at Planet Fitness and has even taken Seddon and the rest of the staff out for lunch to thank them for saving his life.

“Having the opportunity to save peoples’ lives through CPR certification makes working for PF an amazing career opportunity,” said Seddon. “Not just changing lives but also saving them when you are called to duty.”

The community of Iredell County made sure to show their appreciation for Planet Fitness team members and their impact on the community.

“I was able to attend the banquet with the Statesville Planet Fitness Staff,” said regional manager Jonah Brooks. “The PF crew received a standing ovation from a room of 200 brave men and women in attendance which included state representatives, EMS, firefighters, law enforcement, etc. This was a moment that gave me chills and was a very emotional. The director over the event spoke very highly or Planet Fitness and the actions that were taken on the days of the incident. Truly incredible!”