Ambulance crew supports its fellow First Responders with food and community

    A Christmas night fire on Jenkins Lane grabbed the attention of Pendleton County Ambulance Director Jody Dunhoft less for its intensity and more for what was missing—the familiar sight of the Red Cross canteen that is normally available to firefighters as they battle blazes at any time, but especially during night calls like this. The canteen has been a ready place for First Responders to get much-needed refreshment in the form of coffee, Gatorade, and snacks. That night, it was not to be found. The nearby Scaggs family filled the void by providing coffee and water to the men and women who were battling to dowse the fire, but Dunhoft recognized a need that needed to be filled. She sat down with Capt. Sarah Hall later, and the two began devising a plan.
    The ambulance crew is automatically dispatched to fires as a stand-by in case of injury or illness. This night, they soon recognized that they could provide a way to lessen the risk of either if they could fill in this gap that had come about, they later found out, because the regional chapter of the Red Cross had informed Mary McDowell, our local leader, that she could no longer provide in this way, at least until the danger of rioting (that Louisville had experienced, not Falmouth) and COVID-19 were past. She learned at that time that she was one of very few across the state who performed this service. She had to stop assisting immediately.
    As Newton observed in physics, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. In this case, if the Red Cross was not allowing their chapters to support their First Responders, the First Responders here decided to support their own.
    This decision was at first pretty rough in how it was carried out. Dunhoft laughs as she tells the tale.
    “We made coffee and put it in a Gatorade dispenser. Talk about a mess. Coffee was everywhere!”
    She and the crew also provided snacks and other refreshments that night. “It takes all of us,” she states.
    She soon realized that “all” also meant the community. The ambulance department bought a real coffee maker to help with the need, and they put out a call for donations from others in the community. The ambulance service and the Pendleton County Attorney’s office put out calls for donations of snacks and drinks, and the community has responded. Nate Gilbert, part of both the ambulance and the fire departments, shared that many churches and organizations in the area have also answered the call for donations.
    Dunhoft is grateful for the support from the community because she sees an element many forget. “This is a volunteer fire department. These guys come out and fight fires, sometimes most of the night, and then go home, take a shower, and go to work—often still coughing from the smoke they have inhaled.”
    Gilbert mentioned, too, that McDowell may be down, but she is far from out. She purchased Gatorade, coffee, and snacks out of her own pocket and brought them in. She of all people knows what the firefighters go for first, and she brought their favorites in—items full of sugar and salt, especially.
    “Sometimes their sugar drops, and they need a candy bar to keep going,” McDowell explains. They lose salt because of perspiration, and salty snacks are especially welcome.
    Gilbert makes it clear that the Red Cross is still serving disaster victims. Due to the atmosphere in the country, the Louisville division of the national chapter felt it better to protect its people by keeping them out of the front-line work as McDowell and her chapter have done for years.
    “It takes a toll on me,” McDowell confesses, “but I have to go by what National says.”
    She has tangibly supported the firefighters since her husband was one. He remained on the department until his death, and she has continued her work. She was also a First Responder with the ambulance years ago, so she knows well the struggles these men and women face on a daily basis.
    Fire Chief David Klaber raves about the support they have received. “We are truly blessed to serve such a great community and thank everyone for their donations. We also thank our brothers and sisters of PC EMS.”