The Amazing Eyota Ambulance

Many people equate ‘serving God’ with ‘things that people do at a church.’  On Saturday night I received a stark reminder that this need not be the case!

I woke up on Saturday morning with a load of ambition...and didn’t waste a minute!  Despite the heat, I cleaned out a shed, painted over some mildew spots, rearranged part of the garage (to make room for the clutter from the shed), sorted part of a closet inside, did some laundry, ran to Rochester to pick up a few things at the store, listed some stuff on Craigslist (anyone want car ramps??), and dealt with some rust on my trailer hitch.  Whew!  As the sun started to go down I headed out on a run to get me ready for Friday night’s Eyota Days 5K.

I knew from the start that it would be a hot and muggy run and I wasn’t disappointed.  About halfway into the race my hands started to tingle, feeling like I’d rubbed them against some wild parsnip.  A little while later my face felt the same way.  I wondered what I’d gotten into…and I kept running (and sweating).  By the time I got home my feet began to tingle as well and I felt a bit ‘off.’  I quickly guzzled a couple of glasses of water as I felt more and more woozy.  Soon I got too dizzy to stand up.  Shannon and Ben raced to get ice on me to cool me down but didn’t have much luck.  Ben did a quick Google search for ‘Heat Stroke’ and read off the symptoms.  I had most of them.  I’d done too much…with way too little water.  My body rebelled.  The website was clear…call 911.

A short time later three of Eyota’s wonderful volunteer EMTs were at my side, giving me oxygen and checking my pulse.  They had the training to help me improve.  By the time they left I was on the mend, able to stand once again (though a bit shaky).

Being a volunteer EMT is not glamorous work.  It takes many hours of training…and countless hours of being on call.  Emergencies interrupt family time and sleep time.  Pagers go off at all hours.  It takes a serious commitment!

The three men who came to my house did God’s work on Saturday night. They gave of their time to help someone in need (me!).  I certainly appreciate it!

Peace is blessed to have three members of the Eyota Ambulance in our midst (Laurie Mickow and Scott & Carla Brunsvold).  While their work at Peace is always appreciated, they daily serve God by serving the community.  Thank you to Laurie, Scott & Carla…and all those who give of their time to help the people of Eyota in times of need.  Whether you realize it or not, you do God’s work!