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March
1, 2010
Benefit Event for Jackson Co EMS Employee an Overwhelming Success
In
October 2009,
Jackson
County
EMS
employee Rhonda Hibbitts was unexpectedly diagnosed with breast cancer.
Rhonda has worked in the EMS field for over 20 years, living in
Laurel
County
but traveling to
Jackson
County
to work. With her
EMS
family rallied around to support and comfort her through this trial,
Rhonda soon began undergoing surgeries to prepare her for chemotherapy and
radiation treatments, which began in January 2010.
Knowing that Rhonda would be unable to work for a period of time, her
coworkers at Jackson County EMS began organizing a benefit to help with
Rhonda's medical and travel expenses to and from St. Joseph Main in
Lexington. The group began gathering donations for an auction, soliciting
friends and families for food for the dinner and hanging flyers inviting
the community to join them for a cause dear to their hearts. The staff at
KY-1 donated a weekend getaway to
Gatlinburg
,
Tenn.
, and a dinner for two, along with preparing food for the event
It all came together February 7 at the Gray Hawk Fire Department. The KY-1
aircraft landed near the fire department and Ambulance, Inc. of Laurel
County pulled in with its Breast Cancer Awareness ambulance (yes, it is
completely PINK!). People from
Jackson, Laurel, Clay, and other counties who had worked or been
acquainted with Rhonda for many years began piling into the fire
department.
The festivities began at 1 pm, and by 2 pm they had already collected on
food alone what they thought would be raised during the entire event.
Three hours later, after all auction items were gone and the
building close to empty, Rhonda was handed approximately $4600 with over
200 people in attendance.
The outpouring of support was
overwhelming for Rhonda was overwhelming, who took the floor during the
event to thank everyone for their love and support. Rhonda tearfully told
the crowd that she had never had the pleasure of being a part of such a
wonderful community until she began working in
Jackson
County
.
"I
may live in
Laurel
County
, but I consider
Jackson
County
my home. It feels so good to
be back home. I love you all. You'll never know what this means to me.
Thank you so much,” she said.
Information/photo
courtesy
Jackson
County
EMS
with special thanks to KY-1’s Letch Day.
___________________________
About
Air Methods Kentucky
Air
Methods Kentucky is a full-service air medical transport system covering
Kentucky and southern Indiana.
Founded in 1982 as the first civilian air medical program in Kentucky,
in 1995 it became the first air medical program in the state to earn
CAMTS (Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems)
accreditation. It operates 10 helicopter ambulances and one
fixed wing ambulance throughout its region, with state offices
headquartered in Lexington. With a mission of safety, quality, and
integrity, Air Methods Kentucky is committed to providing its patients
and medical and emergency service partners with a high level of care and
professionalism. For more information about Air Methods Kentucky,
visit http://www.airmethodsky.com.
About
Air Methods Corporation
Air
Methods Kentucky is owned by Air Methods Corporation (NASDAQ:
AIRM),
the nation’s largest
provider of air medical emergency transport services and systems. The company is dedicated exclusively to air medical transport,
focusing on the quality of care to patients, and safety in
aviation operations. With 27 years of experience, the company transports more than
84,000 patients annually who require intensive medical care from
either the scene of an accident or general care hospitals to
highly skilled trauma centers or tertiary care centers. For
more information about Air Methods Corporation, visit http://www.airmethods.com.
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