Letter to the editor:

January 22, 2007

I would like to address the issue of the new gurney at the Delta Rescue Squad. As some of you may or may not know, the people who make up the rescue squad are strictly volunteer, we do not get paid, in fact we pay money out of our own pockets to help the community.

We put our lives, our families on the back burner to help those people in a medical emergency. We put our health and body at risk every time we respond to a call.

A couple of squad members went to Las Vegas for continuing medical education, not just to go and spend money. There are several of people on the squad that have back problems, knee problems and various other medical problems that are physically taxing.

We felt this gurney would be a good idea. It would help others on the squad from possibly getting a back injury. If we had know the price up front we would have gone through proper channels, however it was a busy weekend with a short amount of time in between classes to see all the new technology out there.

I am not sorry about purchasing the gurney, I am sorry that we went about it wrong. If it saves an injury it was well worth the cost.

Jill Longnecker