MFD Firefighters, Paramedics Honored At Dane County EMS Survivor Banquet

As they see it, saving lives is just what they're expected to do. It's part of the job.

That’s why the humble firefighters and paramedics of the Madison Fire Department sometimes get a little bashful when a spotlight shines upon them.

The spotlight shone brightly Saturday, February 13, as 78 MFD personnel were honored at the Dane County EMS Banquet.

The event was an opportunity for cardiac incident survivors to be recognized and meet the first responders who gave them another lease on life.

“I literally owe my life to them,” said Village of Oregon resident Nicki Wagner at a press conference last week. 

Wagner collapsed in a parking lot near the Oregon Fire/EMS station on October 1, 2015. As Oregon EMTs began lifesaving measures, Madison paramedics Aaron Babcock and Bob Wallace, riding Medic 6 from Badger Road, were dispatched to assist with advanced life support and transport Wagner to the hospital. 

“After the (cardiac) arrest, I started to educate myself,” said Wagner. “Over the moon and back, a million thanks.”

There were 31 cardiac saves in Dane County last year, a new record according to Dane County EMS. The Madison Fire Department responded to 15 of those calls. 

24 of the 31 saves involved bystander compressions provided by witnesses, police officers, and other non-EMS responders. We hope these numbers increase as more citizens equip themselves with knowledge of CPR and activation of the PulsePoint smartphone app.

In addition to the outstanding work of its first responders credited for cardiac saves in 2015, the Madison Fire Department is proud of the 21 individuals recognized for their many years of service in Dane County.

Below is a complete list of those honored at the 2016 Dane County EMS Survivor Banquet.

                                                       
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MFD Personnel Honored For Cardiac Saves in 2015:

January 31, 2015: Deborah Nickolaus, Nickolas Nabholz, Eric Isberner, Stephanie Clary, Nate Franke, Carrie Holloway, Paul Texidor

February 5, 2015: William Yackel, Andrew Swanson, Matthew Anliker, David Cerqua, Shane Lettman, Liza Tatar

April 6, 2015: Bennett Lardie, Tammy Nelson, Lindsay Manning, Michael Anderson, Craig Brinkmann, Tim Hagan, Robert Luling

July 25, 2015: Todd Mahoney and David Guthrie

July 28, 2015: Eric Isberner, Tammy Nelson, Eric Brinkmann, Troy Donkle, James Schmitt, and Carolanne Trilling

August 30, 2015: Joshua Erdman, Vince Soto, Jon Byrd, Robert Luling, Mark Miller, Paul Schecklman

September 4, 2015: Craig Jones, Nickolas Nabholz, Ronald Blumer, Derek Brown, Justin Tews, Sam Yackel

September 8, 2015: Nicholas Mittelstedt, Dan Williams, Jon Byrd, Mark Miller, Daniel Pazurek, Robert Ready, Adam Bauer, Mindy Huitt, Adam Perez, Carl Berridge

October 1, 2015: Bob Wallace and Aaron Babcock

October 6, 2015: Jeff Clapero, Nicolas Zimpel, Larry Grab, Scott Hodkiewicz, Gina Nitecki, Jason Olson

October 26, 2015: Chad Powell, Matthew Murray, Matthew Farmer, Jon Mast, Kevin McDonald, Chad Workman

November 12, 2015: Michael Flores, Laura Prom, Joshua Ramsey, Jacob Englehart, Samuel Hodo, Sarah Thiel, Jacob Timm

November 24, 2015: Gail Campbell and Ryan Staudinger

December 10, 2015: Leon Buggs, Laura Prom, Carl Berridge, Samuel Cooke, John Lucille, Derek Teff

December 13, 2015: Jacob Kuehne, Michael Howell, Chris Carbon, Melinda Huitt, Eric Popovich, Steven Tennant

MFD Personnel Honored For Years of Continued Service:

25 Years Of Service

Kimberly Mathews

Bradley Olson

Robert Recob, Jr.

Javier Teniente

20 Years Of Service

Adam Bauer

Eric Brinckmann

George Fergusson

Javier Font

Michael Fuss

Tami Heilberger

Samuel Hodo

Jeffrey Larson

James Lombardi

Paul Mason

Deborah Nikolaus

Jay Payton

Allen Schmid

Gary Schreiber

Ché Stedman

David Wagner

Johnny Winston, Jr.
 

Pictured above: Carolanne Trilling, Mark Miller, James Schmitt, Rob Ready, Troy Donkle, Ron Blumer, Liza Tatar, Andrew Swanson, Vince Soto, Michael Flores, Eric Brinkmann, Larry Grab,Laura Laurenzi, Ché Stedman, Kimberly Mathews, Dr. Michael Lohmeier, Laura Prom
Pictured below: Nicki Wagner with the Oregon EMTs and Madison Paramedics who responded to her cardiac emergency