Re: y Bolleter's Father

[Guest guest]

Kudos to all. In a world largely without values outside of how large an SUV

one is paying the mortgage on, it is still refreshing to know that there are

those among us who have those fundamental human values that cause them to

perform far above the minimums expected. How often those people turn out to

be EMS people, whether they are publicly or privately employed. EMS is a

wonderful profession. Too bad we who are in it are so often the only people

who realize it.

Today is Pearl Harbor Day. For those youngsters who weren't even born when I

graduated from college, it was the September 11 of the World War II years.

We had become a complacent society and were taken by surprise. The same

thing has happened to us in 2001.

The heroes at Pearl Harbor were not named Bill Gates or Wayne.

Wayne never served one single day in the Armed Services. He was 4-F as I

recall. Instead the heroes were those people who were on the spot, who had

their asses on the line and who responded with superhuman courage without the

thought of reward. And most of them received none.

The same is true for EMS. I have yet to see one windshield decal or bumper

sticker that says " Remember EMS at 9-11. " The first funeral conducted after

that disaster was for a Paramedic with a private EMS company.

Now, please don't lay it on me that I'm knocking FD EMS services. I'm

certainly not. We are family, as the song goes, but EMS needs to be

recognized for what it is.

As the Fire Chief of the Phoenix Fire Department (which runs EMS) has said,

once a fire department begins to provide EMS it ceases to be a FD which does

EMS and becomes an EMS department which does fire.

Think about it.

E. Gandy, JD, LP

EMS Professions Program

Tyler Junior College

Tyler, TX