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| EHS students provided first aid at the MS 60/30 bike ride: (front, L-R) Erica Zierdt, Aaron Gutzmann and Albert Reiff; (back) Matthew Zuniga, Alex Trembley, Daniel Ober and Allison Kelly. Zuniga and Zierdt are biking from New York to Roanoke and biked 100 miles on the day of the MS 60/30 to train for the grueling 6-day, 600-mile EMS Memorial Bike Ride. submitted photo |
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Future first responders visit Ground Zero
EMS Bike Ride honors front-line 9/11 victims
Seth Loy
news editor
Today, 12 Inver Hills Community College students are taking part in a solemn progression at Ground Zero in New York City.
The students, studying to be paramedics or emergency medical technicians, will provide vehicle, logistic and medical support to more than 50 bicyclists participating in the 2007 EMS Memorial Bike Ride.
Help for those who help
The 600-mile, six-day bike ride was started in the wake of 9/11, to raise money for the National EMS Memorial, located in Roanoke, Va.
Dave Page, Emergency Health Services advisor, said the bike ride honors first responders who have died in the line of duty.
"This is the third year of the bike ride, and the first year I've done it," Page said. "The students found out about it and got very excited, and they planned this trip, with fundraising, logistics and giving up what needs to be done."
During the project, students will learn about and raise awareness of line-of-duty deaths and provide service to the community at the same time. They are also raising money for the EMS Memorial and the Minnesota EMS Honor Guard.
"A lot of them have been to New York and are EMTs, but they are just starting to learn how to be a paramedic. It's a very exciting time for them, where they're learning how to fund raise, how to collect money on-line for the college. It's going well. They've worked very hard to get the word out."
An EMT, Page explains, is a "basic level provider" with 110 hours of training, while a paramedic has studied two years, usually holds an associate's degree and provides advanced care.
His students hope to raise awareness of the sacrifices of the nation's first responders and the need for the creation of a mandatory death-and-injury registry. Planners believe a national registry will lead to death benefits for EMS workers killed in the line of duty, as well as improved safety and better pay for the dangerous job first responders perform.
From first aid to bike repair
David Ussatis, vice president of the EHS Student Association, became involved in the effort last semester.
"It's much like what we did for the recent Ironman. We'll be providing medical support, and in this case logistical support as well, bike repair, really running the whole gambit. What we want to do now is raise $5,000 for lodging."
To raise money for the trip, the students this semester have taught CPR to an entire high school, worked with Richfield Ambulance and set up a Web site to process donations (www.emsbikers. com).
"They're a very focused group, just fantastic," Page said.
Donations are welcome until Memorial Day through the group's Web site. Checks are accepted at the EHS Student Association at: Inver Hills Community College, 2500 80th St. E., Inver Grove Heights, MN 55076, Attn: Dave Page (EHS Dept.).
Ussatis, an EMT currently studying to become a paramedic, said the students financed their trip partly by selling items, working with Regions Hospital, talking to preschoolers about safety and giving ambulance tours.
He and his classmates, "a dedicated bunch," hope to learn a lot from their trip to New York.
"It really runs the gambit, learning the medical aspect of the job, the sports injuries, how to treat people, how to help them, learning logistic elements such as planning, how to carry something off, leadership. It's a huge spectrum we're going to take away from this."
Page describes the trip as both an "educational experience" about the dangers of the profession they are choosing, and a chance to "respect and honor" those who have sacrificed their lives in service to others.
"There are so many new skills the students are learning with this project," Page said. "Such as how to organize themselves, raise money, teach CPR, manage the logistics of a week-long bike trip and the food/medical/lodging needs of 50 cyclists."
- Seth Loy can be reached at 748-7815 or sloy@lillienews.com.
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