The Humans of Lakeland features members of the LHS community. This is the twentieth in the series.
“I do volunteer work as an EMT through the Hauser district. I have been in the department as an EMT for about three months now, but I have been in the department for about a year and a half. My dad is an EMT and is the Chief at Hauser, and I wanted to follow that path. We have training on Wednesdays, and other than that, we are on call. When a medical call comes in, we get a page sent to our phone, and we respond to the station, where we then take the emergency vehicle necessary to attend to the situation. After we help, we go back to the station and clean up. So far, it has been a great experience. It is helpful for a lot of things: for example, I know what to do in emergency situations. However, there are challenges as well. It is known to be difficult on mental health and keeping up with everything that is changing medically. But to me, the pros outweigh the cons. It is very rewarding because I get to help people. I think that this is something I would like to carry out past high school. I do want to get a college degree for something. I want to get on with a paid fire department first to dip my feet in; then, I can do college online for my degree. I will probably work with the department for 20 years before retirement. I think this is a great opportunity, and I have really appreciated being able to help people.”
-William Neils, Junior
