NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Joanne Battaini couldn't get the words out when she called 911 for help last month. As she struggled to breath, her 7-year-old daughter came to her rescue.

 

Quinn Battaini-Barnaby calmly took the phone and gave dispatcher MaryAnn King the correct address so emergency medical services could come to her mother's aid.

 

"She was a real trooper," King said on Friday as Quinn was presented with a certificate from Police Chief Jason Wood designating her a 911 Emergency All-Star Kid. "We are all so very proud of you."

 

"You're a hero," said Sgt. Preston Kelly.

 

The Colegrove Park student quietly accepted the accolades from police officer and Mayor Jennifer Macksey but her eyes really lit up as she pulled wrapping from a Barbie and Care Bear that King gave her. 

 

Battaini was proud of her young daughter, saying she was brought up not to be afraid of police and first responders and to taught what to do in an emergency.

 

"I couldn't breath at all. I'm having trouble breathing now," she said. "We got her ready for something like that because of my health. ... 

 

"She's my girl. She's a good helper at school, too. She gets picked to be the class helper all the time."

 

King said she really couldn't understand what Battaini was trying to say when she called 911 and because she lived within an area of several close apartment blocks, King's virtual map couldn't pinpoint the address.

 

"I'm thinking in my head, oh my god, you know, this is gonna be a delay. I need to get people there," King said. She could hear there was someone else in the room and asked Battaini to put that person on. "So she came on and it was so cute, this little voice comes on and says, 'hello.' And I said, 'hi, who are you?' And she says, 'I'm Quinny. I'm 7 years old.'"

 

Quinn knew what to do when she talked to King giving her the address and staying on the line while waiting for the EMTs. And she wasn't afraid when the ambulance came.

 

"You know what she remembers most about it? She says, 'I remember I got to go in an ambulance,'" Battaini smiled. "Not that her mom was out of breath. Or that I was in distress. She remembers the ambulance ride."