Jolynn and Kent Janssen donated four automated external defibrillators (AED) to the Martin County (Minn.) West High School weight room and the Martin County Area Magic at the Armory through the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial.
According to the Fairmont Sentinel, the Janssen’s lost their son Karson in 2021 to undetected myxomatous degeneration of the heart. That experience prompted them to create the Karson Kent Janssen Memorial fund and champion screenings and accessible AEDs. The Janssens did not have any warning of their sons condition, and they “want to get as many people screened as possible.”
“To date we’ve done 351 screenings in the area,” Jolynn said. “Because we lost Karson so unexpectedly – he was someone who exemplified everything that someone would want in a son or daughter as far as participation and honesty and just being a friendly individual and in seemingly good health. We know first-hand that it can happen without the slightest knowledge and we pray and ask everyday why he didn’t get a warning. You don’t always get a warning.”
Related: NATA, SCA Foundation Spread Awareness of Sudden Cardiac Arrest for National Heart Month
The Karson Kent Janssen Memorial has also hosted CPR classes and donated $112,000 in scholarships to student-athletes through its annual Hoops for Hearts event in February. The event will be held on February 7, 2026 and include a silent auction.
“It’s quite amazing, the community as a whole, they participate to a tremendous degree. It’s incredibly humbling, the amount of dollars that are raised that night and it’s all given away,” Kent said.
MCW education director, Nickole Bowie, told the Fairmont Sentinel that the AED would be mounted on the wall in the coming week, with a plaque to honor Karson. The new AED also includes a feature that sounds an alarm when the kit is opened, alerting bystanders to the emergency.
