Nursing Student Saves Customer's Life Outside Pizza Shop

When a customer collapsed without a pulse outside Riko's Pizza in Levittown, 20-year-old waitress Saige Colleluori didn't freeze. She dropped to the ground and started saving a life.

Colleluori, a sophomore nursing student at Molloy University, was in the middle of her shift when co-worker Aidan Connors spotted the woman lying motionless on the pavement outside. They called 911, but Colleluori knew waiting wasn't an option.

She checked for a pulse and found nothing. Within seconds, she cleared the woman's airway and began chest compressions, counting to 30 just like she'd learned in class.

"And then she started breathing again, it was like a choke and then she started breathing again," Colleluori recalled. The woman's life returned before paramedics arrived.

Connors watched the rescue unfold from inside the restaurant. "I mean, honestly, it was incredible to see somebody with this much skill to do something like that," he said.

For Colleluori, who works two jobs while pursuing her nursing degree, this was her first real emergency. Her training at Molloy University emphasizes hands-on learning, with special focus on CPR and heart health. But she also grew up surrounded by lifesavers: her dad is an FDNY lieutenant and her mom is a nurse.

Sunny's Take

This story landed on National Nurses Day, making it an especially powerful reminder of why we need skilled, brave healthcare workers. Marcia Gardner, Dean of Nursing at Molloy University, called Colleluori's actions "quite an amazing story," noting how rare it is for someone with limited patient care experience to run toward an emergency instead of away from it.

The incident gave Colleluori something no classroom ever could: confidence. "It's just great now that I'm like, I think I can do it," she said.

Somewhere in Levittown, a woman is alive today because a college student refused to panic and remembered her training when every second counted.