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ALBANY, GA -- For Thomas Allen it's a chance to give back.

“We’re trying to raise money for Albany-Area YMCA so they can buy adult and infant mannequins, because theirs are so old that they are almost useless,” said the 17 year old.

But to get enough CPR mannequins to swap out the YMCA's old bunch, Thomas needs to raise about $4,000.

“We’re looking at buying four sets of adult mannequins and four sets of infant mannequins and each set has four,” said Allen.

The old mannequins are outdated and have been in use for the past seven years. Over those seven years they've taken a beating.

“The YMCA certifies approximately, 100 people a year in CPR and first year. With doing a 100 people a year the old mannequins have gotten worn, so the new mannequins will help us deliver a more efficient class” said YMCA CPR instructor Terry Coleman.

Those new ones are called Prestan Mannequins. They're more lifelike and designed respond to CPR techniques.

“The new mannequins have sensors that will tell the student if they are doing compressions correctly, it has a chest that rises so they can see if the air is going in for the breaths,” said Coleman.

Aside from looking more realistic the Prestan Mannequins actually feel like a real person. And CPR practitioners say that is very important, because when you are practicing CPR you want to get as close to the real thing as possible.

“You cannot practice CPR on a real person so it's important that the mannequins have a realistic feel. And they also have a feedback mechanism to let you know if you are doing the exercise correctly,” said Coleman.

Thomas says he hopes his efforts breath of fresh air for the YMCA’s CPR training program.

“I was a lifeguard here at the Y and Mrs. Terry taught me everything I know about CPR and I thought it would be a great way to repay them,” said Allen.

So far Thomas has raised $1,000. To donate to the mannequin fund, donations can be mailed to Thomas Allen, 503 Gander Road, Dawson, GA 39842.