The Maplewood Township Committee celebrated National Emergency Medical Services Week at its meeting on May 21 with the following proclamation, read by Township Committeeperson Victor De Luca:
Proclamation designating the week of May 19-25 as EMS Week “Honoring our Past, Forging our Future”
Whereas Emergency Medical Services is a vital public service, and
Whereas the members of Emergency Medical Services teams are ready to provide life-saving care to those in need 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and
Whereas access to quality emergency care dramatically improve the survival and recovery rate of those who experienced sudden illness or injury, and
Whereas the members of Emergency Medical Services teams, whether career or volunteer, engage in thousands of hours of specialized training, continuing education to enhance their life safety lifesaving skills, and
Whereas our township relies upon the members of our South Essex Fire Department who are trained emergency medical technicians to provide life-saving care to the residents of Maplewood and those passing through our borders, and
Here, De Luca interjected: “And I might just add that we get assistance from the South Orange Rescue Squad also and they’re volunteers and together we’re able to provide those services. And —
Whereas it is appropriate to recognize the value and the accomplishments of the Emergency Medical Services system by designating Emergency Medical Services Week
Now, therefore, I, Victor De Luca on behalf of Nancy Adams, Mayor of the Township of Maplewood, and my township committee colleagues, hereby proclaim the week of May 19- 25, 2024 as Emergency Medical Services Week in the Township of Maplewood with the theme, Honoring our Past, Forging our Future, and we encourage the community to honor the trained emergency medical technicians of the South Essex Fire Department.
De Luca added, “For a number of years, we were negotiating the consolidation of the Maplewood and South Orange Fire Department. And throughout all of our negotiations on the Maplewood side, we wanted to retain EMS services as part of SEFD [the merged and newly named South Essex Fire Department] for Maplewood because of the quality of service, and commitment of new firefighters. And so this is very special because we really depend on you and we want to see that continue going forward because we think that’s the best way to provide services to our community. ”
Maplewood Township Clerk Liz Fritzen, a longtime EMT, added, “These guys are my friends. They’re special. I’ve done a lot of training with them for EMT recertifications and the public doesn’t really understand the countless hours that go into being an emergency medical technician and re-certifying every three years.”
Fritzen continued, “I happen to be a volunteer. I’ve done it my whole life. It’s been a blink of an eye, but it’s a huge commitment. … I will say that one of the highlights and bright spots for me is on a Thursday night when I’m up at Overlook or Saint Barnabas at 3:00 AM and I see the SEFD fire ambulance pull in and I know my buddies and I’m not the township clerk anymore. I’m Liz Fritzen, the EMT, and I look just like them. And I have the same uniform on and we embrace and people are like, ‘Holy Mackerel, they must know one another.’ Well, in the EMS world, we do know one another. So thank you. And you know, you guys, I think you’re aces. Keep up the awesome work.”
