In the winter of 2010, 19-year-old Race Salazar was an up-and-coming architecture major at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

He was a stand-out student from Folsom, California, an avid athlete, and musician. Las Vegas was the place where he wanted to be.

"This is where he decided to come, and quickly made it his home," said Karie Salazar, Race's mother.

Las Vegas was Race's home for a year and a half, but for Race's mother, the night of February 19, 2010 is the night everything changed.

"He, uh, suffered a life-ending cardiac arrhythmia," Salazar said. "He went to sleep and never woke up."

UNLV Resident Life Coordinator Stan Dura was the one who had to make the call to Karie.

"It was just something you can't really prepare for, no matter how much you think you are," Dura said.

Sudden cardiac arrest happens when the electrical signals of the heart go haywire. Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome (SADS) is a term used to describe cardiac arrest that is brought on by an irregular heart rhythm and no structural defect - which was the case with Race Salazar.

Click here to view Karie Salazar's heartfelt interview.


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