Celebrate The Helpful People Who Save the Helpless

Hopefully, there are some people you will never have to meet while they're on the job.  For every librarian you meet, or mechanic, or clerk, we probably don't think about it too often. But one person you don't want to meet on the job... is a paramedic. I don't know about you, but every time I hear an ambulance or police or fire engine siren, all I can think is, "There but for the Grace of God go I." And it's not like I'm religious or anything. I guess it's just hard to forget some things. Certain sounds are like that, they take you back in an instant.

You probably remember this, but probably....ten?  Fifteen years ago?  I lived in a somewhat famous apartment building in town that burned down.  It was... bizarre.  It's one of those situations you hope no one ever gets put in, and while there are a ton of people who come out of the woodwork to help, you never really feel... right.  Not when something like that happens.  Not for a long time.

Sure, people were nice, but it's just a very quietly inexplainable feeling.  I remember standing there, staring up at the smoke, hoping with every bit of me that believed in Santa and Bigfoot and Tinkerbell that it just..... wasn't that bad.  I imagine it's very similar when someone gets in a serious car accident.  The panic sits at the back of your throat and you keep looking, hoping, trying to find that something that will either make it okay, or somehow make it all go away.  Like it's a bad dream, and you'll wake up any second.

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Anyway, I was bawling my eyes out at the time with my Father and a couple of cousins, when a couple of paramedics approached us.  I don't know what it was about his voice, and I never did get his name, but he very calmly pulled me aside and spoke to me.  I guess it was obvious who was the affected party.  He convinced me that staying and watching everything I own burn to the ground was probably not good for my mental health. He was right. It's not like I could do anything.

After that, it was going to sit in someone else's clothes that smell like lilacs on someone else's couch, scratching your arm while sitting and staring off into space, hoping the little kitty Banks just... went to sleep. It was eviscerating in a way I can't explain.  But it was the start of starting over.  And it began sooner, with expert kindness and practical care, because of a paramedic.

So if you've ever had an experience like mine, where you had to meet someone on the job in the one of the most difficult situations, you know how we feel for emergency responders. We want to thank them at every opportunity for that empathy, that knowledge, and the fact that they just give a damn.

So What Can We Do?

This is the part where I tell you that.  The Warrensburg Chamber of Commerce sent out a newsletter inviting the public to an event.

 On May 9th we will be holding our Emergency Responder Appreciation Lunch at Lotspeich, located at 150 NW US Hwy 50, Warrensburg, MO 64093. All Emergency Responders eat free, and in-kind donations are appreciated by supporters.

If you can't make it, you can always email kdavenport@warrensburg.org for information.  They're taking donations, so if you want to drop something off, I'm sure they can tell you what's up.

Meet some of these fantastic people off the job, okay?

Respondingly yours,
Behka