Jake Leet, right, of Lawrence, gets a hug from fellow cast members Maggie Gremminger, who played Fiona and Knute Pittenger, who played Shrek, during a party at Theatre Lawrence, Saturday afternoon. Leet, who played the character Donkey in the theater's production of Shrek went into cardiac arrest during the middle of one of the performances.

Jake Leet, right, of Lawrence, speaks to the crowd gathered as his mom Teri watches, during a party at Theatre Lawrence, Saturday afternoon.

Jake Leet, right, of Lawrence, greets some of the first responders who helped save his life.

Jake Leet, right, in his Donkey costume with cast mates before a performance of Shrek at Theatre Lawrence.

Jake Leet, 20, lies in a medically induced coma at Lawrence Memorial Hospital after collapsing on stage during a Theatre Lawrence performance of Shrek. Leet played Donkey in the musical. Were talking about one hour hes

If you saw Jake Leet energetically hugging each of the nearly 100 guests his party at Theatre Lawrence Saturday afternoon, you wouldn’t think he’d been on death’s door just a week ago to the day.

On Dec. 21, the 20-year-old collapsed on stage during a production of “Shrek” at Theatre Lawrence. His heart had stopped, and he wasn’t breathing.

Serendipitously, a few medical professionals happened to be in the audience and began CPR until an ambulance could arrive. Jake Leet’s mother, Teri Leet, said a doctor from the audience asked three times for an Automated External Defibrillator (AED), but Theatre Lawrence was not yet equipped with one.

Jake Leet eventually stabilized and learned he’d survived a heart attack due to a previously undiagnosed heart disorder, Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.

Aside from some mild chest pain, Jake Leet is back to himself just a week later and says he wants the experience to have a purpose.

“Going forward, we have to look at this as a chance to spread awareness,” Jake Leet said. “We need AEDs in these areas because it’s just a matter of five minutes that could decide the life of a young man like myself.”

While there wasn’t an AED at Theatre Lawrence at the time, Teri Leet – just five days after her son woke up from a medically induced coma – is making sure there will be in the future.

“When I’m motivated, I have to move,” Teri Leet said. “While this is still fresh and we have people on board, we have to raise awareness to hopefully save the life of another.”

Teri Leet planned to start raising the $2,000 to purchase an AED device for Theatre Lawrence at the party for Jake Saturday afternoon, but serendipity struck again.

Val Phillips, a mother of one of Jake Leet’s friends, had driven her daughter to the party. When she learned of the celebration’s purpose, she was shocked. She’d recently replaced all the AEDs at her workplace in Kansas City and had the old devices stashed away.

“I didn’t know this was a fundraiser for an AED,” Phillips said. “I’ve had eight AED devices sitting on a shelf in my office, not knowing what to do with them.”

Phillips offered to donate two AEDs to the theater. While the devices will expire in 2015, they can be used while Theatre Lawrence raises funds to purchase a new AED.

But just because Theatre Lawrence will now have the AEDs, Teri Leet won’t be slowing down her efforts. She said she will continue raising money with the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Endowment Association for CPR and AED education and to purchase AEDs for other establishments in town.

“We owe it to each other as a community to get certified,” Teri Leet said. “Looking forward, I would like to see an AED device on every block downtown.”