Snow from the Feb. 6-9 major storms is long gone, but gratitude from the staff of Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center remains for Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue, which provided roundtrip transportation for more than 40 nurses and other medical professionals.
In all, about 10 civilian volunteers from Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue drove more than 1,500 miles that weekend, bringing in key hospital personnel who otherwise would have been stranded at home. They traveled as far as Skamania and Cowlitz counties to ferry hospital employees to and from work.
“I only live half a mile away, but I never would have made it in on my own,” said Jaymi Whalen, R.N., a labor and delivery nurse at Salmon Creek.
“We’re just happy to be able to provide a service that makes a difference to the community,” said Terri Wright, a CCSO Search and Rescue volunteer who helped coordinate employee rides during the storms. “It feels good to know you can help.”
As a thank you, Bryce Helgerson, chief administrative officer, and Denise Fall, R.N., nurse executive at Legacy Salmon Creek, presented Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue with a $1,000 check and a large basket of first-aid supplies.
“We can use every single thing in that basket,” said Tony Collins, a CCSO Search and Rescue volunteer who works for the Social Security Administration.
Wright said the money will be used to help equip the group’s new gear trailer and to purchase other needed equipment.
CCSO Search and Rescue volunteers use their own vehicles and equipment to assist the Clark County Sheriff’s Office in various situations, including helping locate lost hikers. This was the first time the group helped with employee transportation at Legacy Salmon Creek.
“It was a critical moment, and we would have had to shut down some of our units without their help,” said Kate Williams, R.N., manager of Surgical Specialties at Legacy Salmon Creek.
Anyone interested in joining Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue may call (360) 607-7089 or visit the group’s website, www.ccsosarwa.org.
