The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBURG - The Waitsburg Ambulance service is looking for a few good men (or women!) to help with shift coverage. Deputy Chief EMS responder Sharon Brooks said she'd love to see five to ten volunteers join the service and commit one day a week to being on call. The Waitsburg Ambulance Service (WAS) will be 45 years old this March. It began in 1970 as an all-volunteer service. Today the service is run by EMS Chief Richard Naumann and EMS Deputy Chiefs Sharon Brooks and William Potolichio, who all work 30 hours per week. However, the service is still heavily dependent on volunteer help to staff ambulances for runs, and volunteer numbers have dwindled in recent years. Volunteers agree to be on call for specific shifts and Brooks said those times are flexible. "People can be available as much or little as they like, we just need to be in communication with them for scheduling," she said. Volunteers must be at least 18 years of age, have a clean police record, have-up to-date immunizations and be able to do some lifting. Volunteers are not paid for being on call but do receive a quarterly stipend of minimum wage for their time spent on calls. Volunteers must take an Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) class, the cost of which will be covered by WAS. EMR is the minimum amount of training necessary for volunteers and is required even to drive an ambulance. Volunteers who wish to go beyond the state-mandated EMR class may take an Emergency Medical Technician class through Walla Walla Community College. Volunteers must pay for the class in advance, but will be reimbursed for the cost of the class after one year of active service or upon completing 40 calls. The WAS is an important community asset. In addition to responding to medical emergencies, the crew is present at all varsity football games, 5K runs, bicycle races and will be on hand for the upcoming Waitsburg Celebration Days ATV Poker Run. "Volunteering is a great way to help out in your own community," said Brooks.