Kaiser Permanente Honors First Responders
Kaiser Permanente in the Napa Solano area celebrated first responders at its annual event held Wednesday, Sept. 26 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.
“When they get the call, first responders never know what may lie ahead. Yet, they respond, and they show their dedication and commitment to saving lives every day,” said Nor Jemjemian, senior vice president and area manager “We are proud to partner with them to deliver lifesaving care to the critically injured.”
Over the past few weeks, residents from the community submitted nominations telling the stories about those working in emergency medical services who went above and beyond in protecting or saving lives, or who helped with community efforts focused on injury prevention.
The awards ceremony included a moment of silence to honor fallen CHP officer Kirk Griess who was killed in the line of duty last month.
Kaiser Permanente also made two donations. One donation in the amount of $25,000, made in memory of fallen Officer Griess, will support the 11-99 Foundation in its mission to help California Highway Patrol employees and their families in times of crisis.
A second donation of $10,000 went to the 10-33 Foundation to continue the work or providing care to first responders. The organization’s goal is to reduce the ongoing effects of unresolved stress in the lives of those in emergency services through pre-incident training, post-incident crisis intervention services and follow up.
Another part of the event included special recognition of firefighters who worked tirelessly to fight massive wildfires recently.
“Our state has been ravaged with wildfires over the past year. People have perished, many homes have been lost, and entire communities have been devastated,” said Dr. Chris Walker, physician in chief for Kaiser Permanente in Napa Solano. “We offer our deepest gratitude to the firefighters for serving where the need was the greatest, time and time again.”
Award nominees and selected finalists represented emergency agencies in American Canyon, Clear Lake, Dixon, Fairfield, Napa, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo, as well as Solano county agencies.
Those honored included:
- Officer Joseph Duncan, California Highway Patrol
- Randy Titus, Vacaville Fire Department
- Officer Andrew Oros, Napa Police Department
- Anthony Bellamy, Fairfield Fire Department
- Gordon Tsang and Dominic Romero, Medic Ambulance
- Jason Fein, Benicia Fire Department
- Bradley Caldwell, Cal Fire
- Officer Joe Holecek, Fairfield Police Department
- Officer Dave Harvey, California Highway Patrol
- Detective Brian Collins, Detective Michael Brennan, and Detective David McDonald, from the Vacaville Police Department
