Kaiser Permanente Honors First Responders
Kaiser Permanente in the Napa Solano area celebrated first responders from the area on Wednesday night in a special event at the Vacaville Medical Center. Elected officials, business leaders, hospital staff and patients turned out to show their appreciation to those who work daily to keep the community safe.
“We are lucky to have these dedicated first responders serving our community every day,” said Chris Bandy, MD, trauma medical director for Kaiser Permanente’s Vacaville Medical Center, which is Solano County’s designated Level II trauma center. “We are proud to honor them for the work they do help keep people safe, as well as partner with them to deliver care to the critically injured.”
Over the past few weeks, residents from the community nominated someone who works in emergency medical services who went above and beyond in protecting or saving lives, or helped with community efforts that are focused on injury prevention.
The nominees and selected finalists represented emergency agencies in American Canyon, Clear Lake, Dixon, Fairfield, Isleton, Napa, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo, as well as Solano county agencies.
The three finalists:
Captain Jose Martin
American Canyon Fire Protection District
Captain Jose Martin, a 13-year veteran with the American Canyon Fire Protection District, was on vacation with his family near Indio, California when they witnessed a single-car accident.
With one passenger ejected, and two in the overturned vehicle that was now on fire, Captain Martin knew he was in the right place at the right time.
He quickly checked on the ejected passenger, who had suffered numerous fractures, and then along with the help of his brother and another bystander, focused their efforts on rescuing the two passengers trapped in the burning car.
The three were able to extract both occupants and Captain Martin performed CPR on one passenger until local first responders arrived. Sadly, that victim died a short time later. Captain Martin’s quick actions helped prevent additional casualties.
Captain Chad Azevedo
Vacaville Fire Department
Captain Azevedo is recognized for his efforts in preventing teen drivers from becoming victims of traffic collisions through his work with the Solano County Trauma Prevention Collaborative and their IMPACT Teen Driver program.
Captain Azevedo was instrumental in launching the first IMPACT Teen Driver presentation at Travis Education Center, where he felt strongly that students would appreciate and benefit from learning about distracted driving. The program helps young drivers learn what they can do to stay safe, both as drivers and as passengers who influence drivers.
His dedication to this program is apparent, as he reaches out to teens in Solano county to ensure that they do not fall victim to the #1 killer in their age group.
Captain Azevedo is also a volunteer with the 10-33 Foundation, a local organization dedicated to assisting first responders and military personnel and their families. His work with this organization shows his dedication to caring for others who need it most.
Kevin Brown
Firefighter/Engineer, Vallejo Fire Department
A veteran of the department, Kevin is an enthusiastic volunteer who heads up the annual “Toys for Tots” drive, in addition to spending countless hours helping improve the community and himself.
Kevin is a past graduate of Leadership Vallejo, where he connected with local business and community leaders to learn new skills and build solid relationships. He’s also taken on the task of contributing valuable information to the Vallejo Fire Department’s NextDoor and FaceBook pages, sharing his expertise in health and safety and keeping the residents of Vallejo informed about the happenings inside the department.
Kevin recently came across a NextDoor post from an elderly resident who needed smoke detectors at home. Rather than sharing instructions on how to install the detectors, Kevin drove to the resident’s home and installed the detectors himself.
Below is a list of the other nominees who were also honored. Each received a framed commemorative certificate. They also received certificates from Assembly Members Jim Frazier, Tim Grayson, and Cecilia Aguiar-Curry.
Full Honorees list (name and agency):
- Officer, James Criste, City of Vacaville Police Department
- Captain, Nick Eisan, City of Fairfield Fire Department
- Engineer, Francisco Trujillo, City of Fairfield Fire Department
- Firefighter / Paramedic, George DeJesus, City of Fairfield Fire Department
- Firefighter / Paramedic, Brian Jewell, City of Vacaville Fire Department
- Firefighter / Paramedic, Ryan Swick, City of Vacaville Fire Department
- Captain, Jose Martin, American Canyon Fire Protection District
- Officer, Josh Toney, City of Napa Police Department
- Firefighter / Engineer, Kevin Brown, City of Vallejo Fire Department
- Officer, Dylan Friend, City of Dixon Police Department
- Officer, Antonio Aguilar, California Highway Patrol, Solano Area
- Paramedic, Joshua Goodreau, Medic Ambulance
- Paramedic, Sean Miller, Medic Ambulance
- Paramedic, Robert Quiggle, Medic Ambulance
- Flight Nurse, Brian Warner, REACH Air 3
- Flight Paramedic, Megan Cannon, REACH Air 3
- Flight Paramedic, Daniel Workman, REACH Air 6
- Flight Nurse, Deborah Ann Yoder, REACH Air 6
- Fire Captain, Chad Azevedo, City of Vacaville Fire Department
- Firefighter / Paramedic, Nick Warren, City of Dixon Fire Department
- Firefighter / Paramedic, Joe Scarrott, City of Dixon Fire Department
- Fire Captain, Greg Bounds, City of Suisun City Fire Department
