‘He was brought back twice;’ Local teen awake, talking after suffering heart attack at practice

CLAYTON — One of the players on the Northmont High School varsity basketball team was not on the court Friday night.

Luke Mangen, 16, is recovering in the hospital after suffering a heart attack at basketball practice last week.

But the community is coming together to show their support.

“I always like to say we’re a big school with a small, community feel,” Micah Harding, Northmont High School Athletic Director said.

>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Community rallies behind local teen after he suffers heart attack at basketball practice

“Luke Strong” t-shirts filled Northmont’s gym. Everyone from students to parents had one on.

“Well Luke, I gotta tell you, you got a lot of support, a lot of people pulling for you,” John Henry of Clayton said.

“He’s always had a positive energy to him, always smiling, always laughing,” Cooper Lykins, a junior at Northmont High School said.

During Friday night’s game, the district honored the coaches who quickly called 911 after noticing something wasn’t right with Mangen at practice.

>> PHOTOS: Community comes together for teen who suffered heart attack at practice

“They saved his life,” Luke’s uncle Mike Mangen said.

The district also gave an update on how Luke is doing — they said he is awake and talking.

“He’s showing good signs of everything. He’s upbeat, he’s communicating, he’s talking,” Mike said. “...I mean, he was brought back to life twice and he’s making it,”

With the help of his loved ones and the community.

“We’re truly blessed,” Mike said.

On Saturday JD’s Custard is having a fundraiser called “Scoops for Luke” to help Luke and his family.

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