After learning that his school did not have a cardiac defibrillator, 13-year-old Jacob Taylor made it a priority to get the life-saving device for Archer Lodge Middle School in Johnston County.

Jacob has Cardiomyopathy, a condition that thickens the walls of his heart, making it harder for the organ to pump blood throughout his body. His mother, Christine, said she has worried since his diagnosis more than eight years ago, that her son could go into cardiac arrest.

"It's been very stressful," she said.

That stress escalated when the family learned that Jacob's new school, Archer Lodge, did not have a defibrillator The middle school opened in August to serve as overflow for Riverwood Middle School. Jacob is among the first students to attend classes there this year.

"It was very frustrating," Taber said. "We didn't know where to turn."

School officials told the family that the county's high schools have defibrillator, but were too expensive to put in every middle and elementary school, according to Taber. The equipment, which boosts verbal instructions and "is so each to use a fifth-grader could do it," costs between $1,200 and $2,000, she said.

"They have come a long way through advancements," Taber said. "It doesn't shock unless it detects a heart in distress, but they are expensive."

So after scouring the Internet for grant opportunities and not-for-profit organzations, the Taber family discovered New Jersey-based Children's Cardiomyopathy Foundation. The not-for-profit donated the portable device to the Johnston County School Board in November, according to Crystal Roberts, spokeswoman for the school system.

""These devices are very expensive and so when agencies or associations or even students take it upon themselves to ensure that Johnston County Schools is a recipient, we're just all the happier," Roberts said.

The unit now is in the main office at Archer Lodge Middle. Two faculty members have been trained to use the defrillator. And, altough it's a "great too," Roberts said calling 911 in case of a medical emergency always is a priority.

"During the time we're calling 911, now we can do what we can to save a student or a staff member and that makes it even better," Roberts said.

And, Jacob said that he is relieved his school now has the device.

"It makes me feel better because like if I go into cardiac arrest, I know I am going to survive," he said.