Sofie DeValk

At just 21 years old, Sofie Jo DeValk already embodies the courage, compassion, and commitment at the heart of emergency medical services. Her journey into EMS began with an admiration for emergency medical responders and quickly developed into a passion for helping others. Remarkably, Sofie had the opportunity to put that commitment into action before she had even completed her EMT training.

Sofie has worked in healthcare since she was 15. Drawn to fast-paced environments and the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives, she initially enrolled in EMT school as a way to supplement her income while pursuing a career as a surgical technologist. Along the way, however, she discovered something unexpected: EMS was where she belonged.

That realization became profoundly personal during an EMT training scenario. Sofie and her classmates were participating in an exercise in which their instructor was portraying the patient when, without warning, he suffered an actual out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Sofie and her classmates immediately recognized that the scenario had become a real emergency. They shifted from practicing lifesaving skills to using them, working together to provide the critical care their instructor needed. Their training took over as they recognized the cardiac arrest, responded decisively, and became essential links in the chain of survival.

Their actions helped save their instructor’s life.

For Sofie, the experience was more than an extraordinary moment during EMT school. It confirmed that she had chosen the right profession and demonstrated, in the most profound way possible, that the skills she was learning could truly mean the difference between life and death.

Sofie credits her instructors, clinical experiences, and classmates with helping ignite her passion for EMS. They introduced her to a profession that continually challenges its members to learn, pursue further education, support one another, and grow. Her classmates also became an important source of encouragement and accountability as she worked to become the best EMT she could be.

What began as a plan to earn an EMT-B certification while pursuing another career has become a commitment to emergency medical services. Sofie now intends to continue her education and build a career centered on helping people during some of the most critical moments of their lives.

Sofie did not simply learn about the chain of survival in a classroom; she became part of it. Her ability to recognize a genuine emergency, remain focused under extraordinary circumstances, trust her training, and work alongside her classmates to save a life reflects the courage and readiness at the heart of EMS. Her story is a powerful reminder that EMS training prepares providers not only for the emergencies they expect, but also for the moments they never see coming. Congratulations Sofie, a 2026 American Ambulance Association Star of Life!