Tag: LifeNet

Aaron Graves is a go-getter. From his first day at LifeNet, he has always gone above and beyond for his patients and for his coworkers.

Before joining LifeNet, Aaron served in the Army Reserves for six years. Once he graduated college and was engaged to his now wife, he began his career at LifeNet working in dispatch. While serving as a communications professional, he decided to go to EMT school where he experienced his first clinical shift on the ambulance. At that point, Aaron discovered his passion for working in the field.

Aaron worked as an EMT for two years before he became a Paramedic and served for three more years, which was a requirement for working on a helicopter. Aaron saw that he could make a career out of working at LifeNet and “was in everyone’s ear” leading up to his qualification for a position with LifeNet’s Air program. The summer of 2024 will mark eight years of Aaron serving LifeNet patients in almost every capacity possible including dispatcher, EMT, Ground Medic, Field Training Officer, Flight Medic, and—most recently—Air Programs Base Supervisor.

Aaron enjoys the excitement and the community that surrounds him at LifeNet, as every day brings something new, and every call has its own set of challenges. He is described by his team members as, “the epitome of who you want” for someone in this profession. One needs to be patient-centered, a self-starter, and highly motivated to excel in EMS and Aaron possesses all those traits and more.

Jess Gibbs, Director of Specialty Care Services, said of Aaron, “He displays an extraordinary level of empathy, compassion, and enthusiasm for his job. He is always looking for ways to improve, which is evidenced through his continued successes within LifeNet.” Aaron seeks out higher learning opportunities, self-betterment, and continued growth. He promotes education through evidence-based practice while teaching at local EMT and Paramedic programs. Aaron is a humble leader who exemplifies all that LifeNet represents.

On behalf of the LifeNet Air division, we are extremely proud to recognize Aaron’s accomplishments and welcome the opportunity to honor him as a 2023 Star of Life. 

Douglas “D.J.” Sanders was named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Born and raised in Hot Springs, D.J. graduated from Lakeside High School in 2002.

“I was a senior in high school on September 11, 2001. I was inspired seeing people helping people during that time,” he said.

At the age of seventeen, a cadet program at the Garland County Sheriff’s Office kicked off his career path to becoming a First Responder.

“Through the program, I spent time observing in the juvenile jail, the adult jail, and the radio room. I also got to do ride-alongs with a deputy. When I got into the radio room, I fell in love with it. There was technology, and the 911 system was exciting to operate,” D.J. recalled. “A dispatcher is the first First Responder ‘on scene.’ I did one ride-along with a deputy and the rest of the time was in the radio room.”

In 2002, D.J. accepted a paid dispatch position working in Hot Spring County, Arkansas. Three years later, he accepted a position dispatching for the Hot Springs Police Department. In 2009, he started dispatching part-time for the Garland County Sheriff’s Office, and, in 2012, he took a part-time position as an Emergency Medical Dispatcher with LifeNet, Inc.

“I was working as a law enforcement dispatcher and was looking for ways to advance my career. I had decided against being a police officer, so I looked for an alternative form of emergency services. I had become phone friends with the dispatchers at LifeNet. When there was a part-time dispatch position, I took it. EMS became my new career. Being able to provide medical assistance to someone in need is an amazing feeling,” he explained.

One of the requirements for working in dispatch at LifeNet was going to EMT school.

“I had spent twelve years working behind a desk. After I obtained my EMT and started working part-time on the ambulances, I realized my desk now had a windshield. That was a good feeling. I felt like I had freedom,” he said. “Yes, you have to run calls, but you’re driving around and moving and getting to meet new people. No day is the same. The look of relief on someone’s face when they see that help has arrived is priceless to me. That’s what keeps me doing this job.”

A drive to grow within the EMS industry inspired D.J. to go to Paramedic school.

“I had thought about going into a management role in the future, so I went to Paramedic school to enhance my knowledge base and be able to move up the ladder in management,” he said.

In 2020, D.J. was promoted to an Operations Manager (OM) role at LifeNet.

“This is going to sound so cliché. I love my job. My job is my life. I put the ‘life’ in LifeNet,” he said. “I enjoy being able to serve others. I do not really have hobbies because my job is my hobby. My coworkers are my friends. If I can be here supporting our crews, I want to be here.”

D.J. was nominated by his peers to be a 2022 Star of Life for his devotion to his job and his colleagues. He goes above and beyond to help both his coworkers and his patients, and is the epitome of what a LifeNet Paramedic and Supervisor should be. After losing a LifeNet colleague last year, D.J. immediately began taking care of others. He made the calls that needed to be made, ensured that everyone had the resources they needed, and shouldered all the responsibilities of the difficult situation. To D.J., his colleagues are family, and family takes care of each other.

When you can get D.J. to take time off, he enjoys spending time with his family and his dogs. He is always up for a good road trip and seeing new places as well.

David “Blake” Norwood has been named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Growing up, Blake planned to follow in his dad’s footsteps and work in law enforcement. After graduating from Camden-Harmony Grove High School, he attended Arkansas Tech University, where he earned degrees in sociology and criminal justice.

Shortly thereafter, Blake started his career with the Pope County Sheriff’s Office and then the Camden Police Department. In 2015, Blake earned a specialized degree in law enforcement from the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy.

During his tenure at the Camden Police Department, Blake was dispatched on a call that would ultimately change the trajectory of his career.

“We were having our Christmas party at the police department when I got dispatched on a call for an ‘unknown problem.’ When I got there, a man came running out and said, ‘My friend has been shot.’ I found the victim shot in the leg three times. I took the belt off the man who had directed me to the scene, and I made a tourniquet using it and my collapsible baton. I held it until EMS got there. Helping him felt good, more so than getting a drunk driver off the street, arresting someone for a domestic dispute, or writing a ticket,” Blake said.

Blake received a lifesaving award from the police department for his actions on scene.

When his wife, Amanda, took a teaching job in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Blake felt it was the right time to enroll in the EMT program at the Arkansas Fire Academy. Shortly thereafter, Blake began working for LifeNet. Since then, Blake has served as a Field Training Officer (FTO) for new EMTs at LifeNet.

“I enjoy teaching, especially when you have people who are open and want to learn,” Blake said. “I became an FTO because I wanted to be able to reach more people. My teaching indirectly touches a lot more patients because I’ve taught the other EMTs how to do their job. I always tell my orientees to do the right thing and take responsibility for their actions, and I try to live by those things, too.”

Blake’s favorite type of calls involve trauma patients.

“They are the most cut and dry. You can see the problem and you can fix it. There aren’t a lot of questions to be asked,” he said.

Blake was nominated for a Star of Life by his peers and selected by a committee of former Stars of Life at LifeNet, Inc. His integrity, empathy, and commitment to the job and to his patients are just a few of the reasons why Blake’s colleagues admire him. Blake works tirelessly to train new hires and to provide the best patient care possible in every situation.

Blake plans to enroll in Paramedic school in the future and ultimately hopes to work as a SWAT Medic, combining his love for EMS and law enforcement.

When he is not at work, Blake enjoys going out with his friends, playing video games, going to the gym, watching television with his wife, Amanda, and playing with his dog, Scottie, and cats, Matlock and Beldar.

Cory Miller has been named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Cory started his career in EMS after being laid off in 2008 from his job painting airplanes for Cessna.

“Since I was unemployed, the state said I could go to a tech school. I chose EMT school, but I’m not sure why. My dad is a retired police chief and my mom has always worked in the hospital. She was an EMT for a long time,” Cory said.

After finishing the EMT program at Coffeyville Community College, Cory decided to also complete the EMT-Intermediate program at the school.

“When I graduated EMT-I, I started working at Coffeyville Regional Medical Center in the ICU before deciding I wanted to go to Paramedic school,” Cory said. “At the time, I thought I wanted to become a Flight Paramedic. Additionally, I was working as an EMT instructor at the community college when they found out that they had to start a Paramedic class or lose their accreditation. I was one of three Paramedic students in that class.”

In 2013, Cory graduated the Paramedic program and contemplated moving to Dallas, Texas to work as a Paramedic, but he landed in Stillwater, Oklahoma instead.

“I had a bunch of friends attending college at Oklahoma State University, so I stopped here and basically never left,” he said.

Since starting work for LifeNet in November of 2013, Cory has dedicated his career to making a positive difference in the lives of his patients and coworkers.

“I enjoy dealing with the sweet old ladies,” Cory said, when asked to describe his favorite type of call. “I like hearing stories and making conversation with people who have been around for a while. I especially like getting to converse on the way to the hospital with the people who have grown up in Stillwater about how much the town has changed.”

In addition to his EMS certifications, Cory is also a BLS, PALS, and EVOC instructor, and in 2018, he was named a Field Training Officer (FTO).

“I enjoy the FTO position because it allows me to help mold new Paramedics and show them different things. I enjoy the leadership aspect of it,” Cory said.

His advice to others just getting started in EMS is simple: “Never stop studying or learning new things. It’s an ever-evolving career path with new medicines and new technologies.”

Cory was nominated for the Star of Life honor by his peers for his dedication and commitment to the company. His peers describe him as someone who is consistently positive and motivated, and who is always willing to help others in any way he can. His leadership skills are reflected in the countless lives of the team members that he mentors, and the company would not be the same without this guidance.

When he is not at work, Cory enjoys spending time with his family. He married his wife, Heather, in 2016, and they have two daughters, Drew and Rori.

Ronald House has been named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Texarkana, Texas.

Growing up in Hooks, Texas, Ronald was involved in the Boy Scouts.

“That’s what got me into emergency services. I took a first aid and CPR class for the Scouts when I was fifteen that was taught by the Hooks Volunteer Fire Department. They had high school cadets, so I joined the department,” Ronald recalled, talking about his start as a first responder.

A self-proclaimed book- and band-nerd, Ronald graduated in the Top 10 of his class at Hooks High School and headed off to college as a music major.

“I realized it wasn’t what I wanted to do, so I came back and enrolled in criminal justice classes and thought I’d go to work for the FBI. I also took the EMT program for the fire department,” he said.

When he finished the EMT program, he realized he had found his calling. He started at what was then St. Michaels EMS (later LifeNet, Inc.) in Texarkana and immediately enrolled in Paramedic school. He became a Field Training Officer (FTO) a few years later and then ran the quality improvement program for the company for several years.

“I was given the opportunity to manage the communications center for two years, but I quickly realized the position wasn’t for me. I went back out to the field and fell in love with my job again,” he recalled. “Some people want to promote up and be in management. I just wanted to be a Paramedic. Several years ago, I had the opportunity to become a Relief Operations Manager (OM). I did that for a few years. I didn’t like it. I look at my job as a ministry, and I wasn’t able to minister to patients the same way in the OM role.”

Throughout his three-decade career in EMS, Ronald has suffered three burnouts. Each time, he has taken the opportunity to self-reflect and grow as a professional.

“During one of the burnouts, I realized I needed to take a timeout from training everyone else as an FTO and focus on my own education. It’s one thing to teach everyone, but it’s another thing to teach yourself,” he said. “I took a tactical combat casualty care class and the critical care paramedic course. But when a staffing shortage hit a few years ago, I got asked if I would be an FTO again. I said I wouldn’t give more than three months. Doing it again, I fell back in love with it, and I haven’t stopped teaching others since.”

Ronald credits his faith in God for helping him find the passion in both his work life and his marriage.

“The more intense my relationship with God has become, the better my personal relationship with my wife has become. My professional life has changed, too, and I love my job. It’s a terrible job, and you have to see a lot of terrible things. But my job is my purpose, and I think I’m where I’m supposed to be,” Ronald said. “I am able to give and receive at the same time. I’m able to give joy and comfort to folks, and I get lots of laughs. I love the compassion that God has given me. I’m not at this level in my job without it. I feel being a Paramedic is one of my gifts that God has given me. The more I embrace that, the better my job gets.”

Ronald enjoys being an FTO now because it not only helps him grow as he trains others, but it also allows him to instill the right attitude in people just getting started in the career. Part of that attitude is making sure people understand that, no matter the reason why someone has called 911, you have been put in their path that day for a reason.

“We never know how many people we may save just because we were nice. We may feel some of the calls we go on aren’t true emergencies, but we also have to remember, sometimes just by being there, we are the person God used as the answer to avoid their permanent solution for a temporary problem. Every interaction we have with someone, we have an opportunity to provide a simple act of kindness that may prevent them from doing something that day they couldn’t undo,” he said. “Just be nice. It makes such a huge difference.”

Ronald was nominated as a Star of Life by his peers for his dedication to his patients. He is consistently hardworking and kind, and always goes above and beyond to put a smile on his patients’ faces.

Ronald is married to his wife, Samantha, and they have a blended family that includes both grown children and grandchildren. When he is not at work, Ronald enjoys building and tinkering on things, and collecting antique books.

Stacey Himes has been named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Texarkana, Texas.

From an early age, Stacey knew she wanted to work in the medical field, but a personal tragedy in high school lead her to an EMS career.

“I lived two blocks from the fire station, and I watched those guys all the time. On my sixteenth birthday, my best friend was killed in a car wreck. I was planning to be a nurse, but after that, I felt nursing was probably not where I needed to be. I needed to be out there with those guys on the ambulance taking care of people,” Stacey said, recalling how she got started in EMS in the 1980s.

During her senior year at Atlanta High School, Stacey earned her EMT certification and volunteered for the Atlanta Texas Fire Department. During that time, she also earned her Paramedic certification, and in 1994, she hired on with LifeNet.

“My favorite calls in the world were taking grandma home. I made sure she got comfy and had everything she needed before I left that room. I want people treated like they’re my grandma,” Stacey said.

During her early years working in the field, Stacey taught classes to area first responders. She also responded to a wreck that sparked LifeNet’s community education initiative in the 1990s to hold Operation Prom Nights, a program that brought education about the dangers of drinking and driving to schools across LifeNet’s service area. Stacey served as part of the PR event team.

After she became a mother, Stacey needed to adjust her career schedule to balance work and home. That adjustment saw her move into LifeNet’s communications center as a part-time Systems Status Controller (SSC) in 2000. Three years later, she accepted a full-time role in dispatch, bringing the same level of compassion and patient care she was known for in the field to the patients she now helped over the phone.

“On the streets, I loved getting to put a smile on my patient’s face. You never knew when it was going to be the last one. Going into the comm–center was a little bit different. I can’t go out there and touch the patient, but I can tell someone how to take care of the patient,” Stacey said. “In rural areas, I may have a patient on the phone for twenty minutes or longer. They start the call scared and alone. I stay on the phone and comfort them. I tell them, ‘I’m going to be right here with you, and I’m not going to leave you.’ Through the phone, I’m able to hold their hand until the ambulance gets there. By that time, I often have them laughing instead of scared.”

In 2005, Stacey’s husband, Larry, took a job in Cleveland, Ohio, and she left LifeNet. Five years later, she returned to the area and joined the LifeNet family again as an SSC. Since then, she has held various leadership roles, including a lead and a Communications Training Officer.

“I like training new people. It’s furthering my legacy. At one time I helped the patient in the field. Then I was able to get on the phone and help. Now I can say I’ve taught somebody how to tell somebody how to save a life on the phone. It’s another level of reward,” Stacey said. “I tell new employees they are lucky. They get paid to help people. I tell them to sit back and enjoy their job being able to take care of the patients. It is rewarding being able to help people in a situation they wish they never would have been in.”

Stacey was nominated as a Star of Life by her peers and selected by a committee of former Stars of Life at LifeNet, Inc. Her peers describe her as someone who is constantly looking for ways to improve education and to help others. She has an excellent work ethic and is consistently dedicated to her job, encouraging others and boosting morale in the process.

When Stacey isn’t working at LifeNet, she enjoys spending time with her husband, two daughters, and her grandbaby.

Ryan Field has been named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

Born in Stillwater and raised in Ponca City, Ryan grew up wanting to be a professional baseball player. After graduating from Ponca City High School, he served in the U.S. Army for four years as a Combat MOS.

“After high school, I started thinking about my career path. I had welding certifications but didn’t want to weld. I thought about college. I just felt I wasn’t disciplined enough at that time. I thought the military would help me. 9/11 had happened a few years before I graduated high school, and I wanted to be able to contribute. I also had a family background in the military, and I felt like it was my turn to serve,” he explained.

During his military career, Ryan served with the 2nd Infantry Division in South Korea for one year and the 1st Cavalry Division out of Fort Hood, Texas for three years. He also fought in Northern Baghdad from 2006-2008 with the 1st Squadron 7th US Cavalry.

“It was the Army and serving oversees that spurred my interest in fire and EMS because I saw a lot of things and went through a lot of things where I felt helpless. I started to pursue firefighting, and during EMT school I found out how much I loved the ambulance and the EMS field. I got on at LifeNet and it took off from there,” Ryan said, explaining his start in EMS.

Ryan went to fire academy at Pioneer Technology Center in Ponca City, Oklahoma, where he earned his EMT-Basic certification. He earned his Paramedic certification from Meridian Technology Center in Stillwater.

“I think the whole goal is helping people. Being the person who can respond to a 911 call in someone’s time of need is what I enjoy most about working in EMS,” Ryan said. “I’m not much for sitting around in a hospital or an office. I like being out in the field. I like being on the move and in different environments. I like the critical thinking aspect of being a Paramedic. The more critical and challenging, the more I enjoy it.”

Ryan started his career at LifeNet in 2011. Over the course of his career, Ryan has served as a Field Training Officer and as an Operations Supervisor for the company. He also serves as a Flight Medic part-time for another agency.

“I enjoy training people. I trained a lot of people in the military, and I was a welding instructor while I was going to EMT school. I knew I could impact other people by teaching and training,” Ryan said, explaining why he became an FTO. “I really looked up to my instructors and mentors and felt it would be neat to bring in the next echelon of EMTs and Paramedics like they did.”

When Ryan was selected as the Senior Operations Manager for LifeNet, it was an opportunity he could not pass up.

“The leadership position lets me combine two of my passions. Not only do I get to help hire our team and teach and educate people, but I also get to respond and assist our crews on critical calls and difficult situations,” Ryan said. “I like being able to respond to situations when one of our crews is out on the streets needing help.”

Ryan was nominated for the Star of Life honor by his peers for being an “excellent supervisor, mentor, and friend to all.”

When Ryan is not at work, he enjoys being out on the lake on his boat or playing sports. He is married to Tori, and they have three children.

Jason Castleberry has been named a 2022 Star of Life for LifeNet, Inc. in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Jason attributes the start of his career in EMS to stories a high school friend told him, which inspired him to dedicate his life to serving others in the out-of-hospital care setting.

“When I was in high school, there was a guy who got to ride as an observer on the ambulances because his father was a police officer. He would come to school and tell my best friend and me all about what he did. After high school, my best friend and I signed up to go to nursing school. We took our classes for the first semester and didn’t like it. We remembered the stories that guy had told us, and we both transferred over to the EMT/Paramedic program,” Jason said.

Because of his age at the time, Jason could not immediately work as an EMT on an ambulance, but his instructor at Henderson State University allowed him to do Paramedic school at the same time he was working on his EMT certification.

“The instructor just kind of broke the rules and let me take both classes concurrent. I tested for my Paramedic just a few months after I tested for my EMT. That worked out better because back then you had to be 21 to drive the ambulance, and I could work as a Paramedic on the ambulance at 19 and not have to drive,” he said.

Jason started his career in EMS working for a service in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. He also worked for two EMS services in Hot Springs. He was working part-time for the services in Hot Springs when LifeNet, Inc. took over the ambulance contract for the City of Hot Springs in 2005.

“I owned an asphalt seal coating company at that time. Another Paramedic friend of mine at LifeNet was named the director of the air program for LifeNet Air in Texarkana. He helped me get on there, and I was working full-time as a Flight Paramedic about a month later,” Jason said.

While working as a Flight Medic, Jason made the decision to go back to nursing school. He completed the Paramedic to nursing bridge program in Malvern, Arkansas, at what is now called Arkansas State University Three Rivers.

Jason flew for LifeNet Air 1 in Texarkana for seven years as a Flight Paramedic/Nurse, until the LifeNet Air 2 base was opened in Hot Springs. Since November of 2013, he has worked on the helicopter at the Hot Springs Base.

This year marks Jason’s twenty-fifth year working in EMS, and two words describe what he enjoys the most about his career: “helping people.”

“I like being able to make a difference in their outcomes. I enjoy trying to bring some calm to the chaos that is going on in their life,” he said.

While Jason enjoys every aspect of EMS, his favorite calls to respond to are trauma related.

“I feel like those are the calls where you have the ability to fix the patient and help them. If it’s an MI or a stroke, for the most part, you are transporting those patients. For severe trauma patients, you can actually make a significant difference in their outcome,” he said.

For others considering a career in EMS, Jason offers this advice: “Just do it. If you have any interest at all, you should dive into it and see if you like it. Involve yourself in it and see if it fits. It’s not for everyone, but the people who are really drawn to it know that it’s the career for them.”

Jason was nominated as a Star of Life by his peers and selected by a committee of former Stars of Life at LifeNet, Inc. His peers describe his exemplary dedication to serving the community, his passion for making a difference in his patients’ outcomes, and his ability to share his knowledge with the younger generation of medics as reasons why they chose him for this honor.

When Jason learned he had been named a 2022 Star of Life for the Hot Springs Division, he was both excited and surprised.

“I didn’t at all suspect it. I appreciate it very much because I know that it comes from the employees. That probably means the most knowing it’s the people that I work with that chose me for this honor,” he said.

In addition to his work on the LifeNet Air 2 helicopter, Jason also has his CPR, NRP, and TNCC Instructor Certifications and is a CFRN and FPC.

When Jason is not at work, you can usually find him at the local dirt track making laps in his IMCA Modified.

Darren Cowley started his emergency services career in 2009, firefighting with the Simms Fire Department in Simms, Texas. He served as Captain and Training Officer for the department. In 2011, Darren began his EMS career with LifeNet in the Texarkana division as an EMT and receiving his Paramedic certification in 2013 through Texarkana College. His peers at LifeNet describe Darren as very compassionate, honest, professional, treating patients like family. Darren strives to exhibit LifeNet’s mission, values, and vision. Darren describes himself as a Christian, giving all glory to God! Darren currently resides in Avery, Texas with his wife Angela and their seven children, Emma, Cole, William, Sylvia, Brayli, and twins Jed and Wally.”

Cyndy Rider is a full-time paramedic with Lifenet, Inc. in Texarkana, Arkansas. As a child, she split her time between her home in Texarkana and the family farm in Garland City, Arkansas where her father was a farmer and member of the volunteer fire department. After graduating from Arkansas High, she attended Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and Mass Communication.

In 2011 she moved to Providence Village, Texas with her husband, Thomas Rider. While living in North Dallas, she felt a strong desire to leave the retail industry after more 10 years and pursue a childhood dream of becoming a paramedic/first responder. In 2013 she completed her EMT training at UT Southwestern and began working for Allegiance Ambulance in Carrollton, TX. In 2015 she returned to school to become a Licensed Paramedic. She moved back to Texarkana and began working at Lifenet the following year.

Cyndy is well-respected among her peers and co-workers for her positive and cheerful attitude, passion for her job, and exceptional care and concern for her patients. Fellow employees describe Cyndy as, “…always coming to work with a positive attitude and is constantly showing compassion for her patients as well as her coworkers. She cares about her patients and always wants to do her best!”

Cyndy thoroughly enjoys working with students as a preceptor. She takes great pride in teaching others, not only the skills necessary to become a confident and proficient paramedic, but also how to maintain a positive attitude in stressful and sometimes difficult circumstances. She is grateful for the opportunity this job has given her to have a meaningful impact on the lives of her patients and fellow employees.

In her spare time Cyndy enjoys camping, traveling, spending time with her four dogs, playing piano, and serving the members of Fairview United Methodist Church.