Last Thursday, several Whitesboro and Sherwood Shores first responders were presented with the Texas EMS for Children “Crew of the Year” Award for their involvement in a neonatal resuscitation that occurred last spring.
City leaders, the Precinct 4 County Commissioner and friends, family and peers of the award recipients gathered at First State Bank’s conference room for a luncheon that would celebrate and honor the work of the recipients. Lunch was catered by Tender Smokehouse and provided in part by Pediatric Emergency Medicine division of Texas Children’s Hospital.
“Today is a moment that we will reflect on the outstanding work that our EMS responders and our first responder associates perform every single day,” Whitesboro Public Safety Director Jeff Patterson said to the crowd. “We’re incredibly proud of the level of care and professionalism and compassion that they deliver at the most difficult situations.”
Sam Vance, program manager for Texas EMS for Children State Partnership, led the presentation. Since 1984, Texas EMS for Children (a federally funded program through a grant from the health resources and services administration) has been working to reduce infant, child and youth morbidity and mortality by making sure all EMS agencies and emergency departments have the proper resources (medicine, equipment, policies, quality improvement programs, etc.). This helps to ensure every community is fully prepared to care for their youngest patients when it matters most.
Each year, the EMS for Children program recognizes first responders across the state for the work they do to improve emergency care for kids in Texas. The organization seeks nominations for any EMS agencies or first responder organizations that went above and beyond in a pediatric emergency medical or traumatic event created by a unique pediatric community outreach program or developed a pediatric quality improvement program that has helped improve care within those systems.
Whitesboro’s Division Chief of EMS Stephen Wilcox nominated the award winners for their lifesaving efforts last spring. Nominations were reviewed by the EMS for Children Advisory Committee and, at Thursday’s luncheon, individuals from the Whitesboro Dispatch Center, Whitesboro Fire Department (WFD) and Sherwood Shores Fire Department were presented with the EMSC Crew of the Year Award for demonstrating exceptional effort in the care of a child in an emergency medical event.
Those recipients were:
Lisa Whitten - Dispatch Supervisor (Whitesboro)
Nathan Jolly - Paramedic, Whitesboro Fire Department
Johnathan Sheffield – EMT, Whitesboro Fire Department
Jeff Patterson – Assistant Fire Chief, Whitesboro Fire Department
Craig Reed - Sherwood Shores Volunteer Fire Department
Darys Stone – Sherwood Shores Volunteer Fire Department
“When I received an email from EMS for Children asking for nominations for EMS for Children Crew of the Year Award, I was struck by something remarkable,” Wilcox said. “Not only did we have one neonatal resuscitation case to consider, but two – that’s right, two neonatal resuscitation cases within the same year. While neonatal calls are relatively rare, what’s not rare is the outstanding care our EMS crews and first responders deliver day in and day out. Their skill, dedication and compassion are consistent, unwavering and absolutely worthy of recognition.”
Wilcox then recounted the events that unfolded on May 21, 2024 that ultimately resulted in Thursday’s awards.
At 10:09 that morning, WFD’s Medic 251 was dispatched to the northern part of the department’s EMS district near Lake Texoma (a fairly remote area) for a lady who had delivered a baby in the bathroom of an RV camper. Sherwood Shores Volunteer Fire Department (the first responding organization for that area) was also dispatched, and WFD’s Chief 201 joined the call.
The situation involved a series of challenges, the first of which being the caller wasn’t exactly sure of her location. Whitesboro Dispatch was able to ping the call and identify the location of the woman to guide first responders to the scene.
Upon arrival, the team located the camper and found the mother sitting in the bathroom and the newborn, still in the amniotic sack, inside the commode. Paramedic Jolly and EMT Sheffield sprung into action, breaking the sack and removing the baby, who at that time was blue, limp and lifeless. They began chest compressions and ventilation before transferring the infant to an ambulance, where an IV was placed into the umbilical cord for medication administration. A pulse was achieved shortly after.
The baby (whose gestation was unknown, as the mother was unaware she was pregnant) was transported to Texoma Medical Center, where it was estimated to be 26 weeks gestation at time of delivery. (A full-term pregnancy is typically between 39 and 40 weeks gestation.) The infant was admitted to the neonatal ICU where it stayed for several months before being discharged home with no nerve deficits noted.
“We are beyond proud of our dispatch center, our EMS personnel and the first responders that all played a part in this patient’s positive outcome,” Wilcox said. “This is most definitely a miracle, but I believe the outstanding care that was provided to the newborn by all personnel involved gave her the best chance of survival.”
Vance added that what stood out most to the Texas EMS for Children advisory committee was the teamwork that went into this call.
“From the dispatch center to our first responder organizations to the care that was provided by the paramedics that showed up to the scene and transported them to the hospital, everybody was impressed,” Vance said.
In addition to certificates, plaques were also presented to the Whitesboro Fire Department, Sherwood Shores Volunteer Fire Department and the City of Whitesboro Dispatch Center in recognition of not only the outstanding individuals, but the dedicated service of each organization as a whole.
Whitesboro Mayor Jeff Butts shared his appreciation with the group, then, acting as President of First State Bank, announced each award recipient would be gifted an evening at the bank’s Texas Rangers suite complete with transportation.
When asked if anyone would like to say a few words, paramedic Jolly stepped forward and shared a story that reminded everyone of the human side of the life of a first responder.
“This year, I had the privilege of being there for a newborn whose life, by all odds, shouldn’t have continued -- and yet, it did. And I’m grateful to have played a role in that story. But standing here today, I want to be honest with you -- this recognition is bittersweet,” he said. “A few years ago, I lost my youngest daughter. There’s no training, no protocol, no intervention that prepares you for that kind of loss. As a father, not being able to save your own child, it shatters something inside. It changes how you see life; how you show up for others and how you carry love and pain in the same breath.
“This award doesn’t erase that loss, but maybe, in some way, it honors her, too. Because every child I fight for now, I carry her with me. Every time I act quickly, hold steady under pressure, or speak gently to a worried parent, she’s there. She made me better. She made me this.
“So thank you for this award, for recognizing the work and maybe even for seeing something that was born out of love and grief at the same time. To my colleagues, to the families who trust us, and to the little ones who remind us why we do this, thank you. And to my daughter, you’re still part of every life I touch.”
The crew who participated in the most recent neonatal resuscitation will be recognized at the July 8 City Council meeting at City Hall. The meeting will begin at 6 p.m.