Oscoda First Responders Mark 10th anniversary
by Holly Nelson (Oscoda Press)
OSCODA — It was about 5:30 p.m. on Saturday. From all corners of AuSable and Oscoda townships, members of Oscoda Area First Responders were heading toward the AuSable Inn for a dinner marking the organization’s 10th anniversary.
En route, their pagers sounded. There was a person down in Lake Huron off the mouth of the river.
Fortunately, the parasailor was quickly plucked from the still chilly water by the Oscoda dive team and was judged no worse for the experience. The responders continued on to their dinner — a little late, but not by much.
Just as the plates were being cleared, but before the cake had been cut or awards distributed, the pagers sounded once again. This time, it was a two-vehicle traffic accident on US-23 in northern Oscoda. Off they went, dress clothes and all.
By the time they returned to the celebration, most of their guests had left the party.
It was nothing new for the dozen responders, especially the six charter members who have been answering pages since Memorial Day weekend in 1996.
The trained and state-certified emergency medical responders do this 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year — without one penny of compensation.
They face danger with every response, whether it be getting to a scene, a vicious dog, a burning car or from their patients. Last year, for example, one responder, while helping the high heroin addict who caused a traffic accident, came into contact with her AIDS contaminated blood.
They help the ill and injured. They save lives.
Their reward is an occasional thank you and the satisfaction which comes from helping people in need.
Founding member and president, Ryun Ridgway, says OAFR is one of the busiest all-volunteer emergency medical services organizations operating in the state, with its members responding to 207 emergencies in Oscoda, AuSable and Wilber townships during 2005.
OAFR was formed after a change in the county ambulance structure resulted in long waits for patients in need of emergency medical care in the Oscoda- AuSable area.
During the past decade, the organization has gone from fighting to be recognized (first responders can only respond if dispatched) to having to revise its response criteria because it was getting too many calls.
It has grown from having to beg for every dollar and footing bills by digging into their own pockets to achieving financial stability with governmental support from AuSable and Oscoda townships and large grants from the Department of Homeland Security. Through it all, the one financial constant has been Oscoda Area United Way.
When they started, the volunteers could only perform the most basic of emergency medical care, even those like Ridgway who is licensed as a paramedic. Now OAFR has an enhanced relationship with Tawas St. Joseph Hospital, allowing the volunteers to insert breathing tubes into the lungs of non-breathing patients, administer medication to people suffering allergic reactions, check the blood sugar of diabetics and more.
The party was also the official kickoff of the group’s new name — Oscoda Area EMS.
“Although we will always maintain the corporate name of Oscoda Area First Responders and we will probably always be known as the ‘first responders’, this new name is proudly displayed on our new ambulance and better exemplifies our improved level of care and services,” Ridgway said.
He referred to the purchase of a new $74,500 ambulance, which has been licensed by Michigan to serve as a basic life support transport unit. This means that, in addition to treating the ill and injured on-site, the volunteers can now also carry them to the hospital.
Ridgway said the purchase and equipping of the ambulance was possible because of two federal grants from the Department of Homeland Security, plus grants from the Iosco County Community Foundation, the Firefighters Charitable Foundation and Oscoda Area United Ways’ Special Projects fund.
“The volunteers will only transport patients when an Iosco County EMS ambulance is not available or is responding from the Tawas area,” Ridgway said.
The federal grant will also provide Oscoda Area EMS with a complete set of hydraulic extrication tools, commonly known as the Jaws of Life, allowing the volunteers to assist the Oscoda Township Fire Department with freeing patients entrapped in car wrecks and other entanglements. More than half of the volunteers are also members of area fire departments and are already certified in vehicle extrications, according to Ridgway.
“Our success is thanks only to the outstanding support we receive from our communities and local, state and national service organizations. Without their help, we would not be where we are today,” he remarked.
VOLUNTEER OF THE DECADE — Carl Ridgway, right, was singled out for special recognition by Oscoda Area First Responders’ president and his son, Ryun Ridgway. There was no nepotism in this, according to the other members of the group, who echoed Ryun’s praise of Carl as a volunteer who goes above and beyond the call of duty, responding to nearly every call, helping with every phase of the operation and, especially in the early years, providing equipment the group would otherwise have been unable to afford. - Photo by Holly Nelson
