Kristi Wiggins began her career with UT Health East Texas System in 2010 as an ER Nurse in the Level 1 Trauma Center. In 2013, she transitioned to Paramedic/Nurse with the Critical Care Transport Service at EMS/Air1. Kristi is an incredibly hardworking and selfless caregiver who puts her whole heart into her job. She always goes out of her way to do what is best for her patient and the team. Kristi also serves on the Critical Incident Stress Management Team, and puts countless extra hours in helping with community CPR classes, Stop the Bleed, and Car Seat Safety Checks.

Kristi has always been the soft-spoken voice of our team; the one that team members call for support or with concerns. She always listens and does her best to make everyone reach his or her potential. Often, Kristi’s colleagues repeat the phrase, “I wish we could clone you,” because she puts all of herself into everything she does, no matter what.

Kristi has recently taken the position as UT Health East Texas’s QA/QI Coordinator. She has embraced the roll, ensuring that all care is well documented and in line with protocol. With this information, Kristi can make sure that the education curriculum meets the needs of her team. She enjoys teaching and helping the new generation of Paramedics and Nurses learn and to love what they do.

Over the course of Kristi’s career, there have been numerous calls from her patients or her patients’ families, describing how well Kristi took care of them. She brings calm to the storm of any situation, and her ER staff colleagues say they feel a weight lift off of them as soon as Kristi walks in the door.

When Kristi is not at work, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two sons outdoors, hunting and fishing. She is always present at her sons’ sporting events, including High School Clay Target League, and volunteers her time at their school.

In four short years of employment at UT Health East Texas EMS, Juliana has consistently shown exceptional patient care and bedside manner. She came to our company with previous EMS experience and immediately found her place at home.

Juliana is currently training with our CISM team, after immediately expressing her interest in the team when it was created. Before our CISM team, Juliana would personally reach out to employees that she knew had a rough call and check on them. Since being a part of our team, she continues to reach out to crews and management when she knows of anyone that may need the services. Juliana has also taken over the EMS Bike Team. Since taking on the responsibility, she has shown that she is very thorough and pays attention to detail. She has taken over this team with pride and is running it very well.

Juliana’s patient care inspires everyone around her to be better. She genuinely cares for every single one of her patients as if they were her own family, and consistently goes above and beyond for all. An example of this is when a patient once called EMS because she ran out of her medications and was unable to go the pharmacy to get them. The patient had no complaints; she just wanted to be able to take her morning medications and was out of options. Juliana called her Operational Supervisor to pick up the medications in order to keep the patient at home and out of the ER. The patient was so grateful to Juliana for her care, and mentioned that she had never come across a medical professional who treated her with so much respect and compassion.

You will hardly ever find Juliana’s truck without a student on it. This is because of the reputation she has made over the years with her students. The students and instructors at nearby colleges know her by name and recommend her for ride-outs because she takes time with every student to go over everything, from where supplies are located on the truck to protocols and operations. She cares about her community and puts as much effort into training new EMTs and medics as she puts into her patient care.

You may sometimes hear the crews speaking about a “treat fairy.” Few of us know who it is and many still wonder. Juliana keeps a box of snacks, fidget toys, stickers, cards, and inspirational quotes to leave in trucks randomly. When she notices a crew that has been busy or is just not having a good day she will leave treats for the crews to find in their trucks. This has helped spread positivity and unity amongst the crews. She enjoys spreading cheer and wants zero recognition.

Overall, there is not a more deserving person than Juliana “Jewls” Castro for the Star of Life Award. She puts 100% into every patient, every shift, every student, and every crew member.

Anthony “Tony” Hernandez has worked with UT Health East Texas EMS since 2005. Tony is a Regional Director and is responsible for the largest region in the company and oversees over 100 employees.

Over the years, Tony has served in almost every role at UT Health EMS. He came to the company as a Paramedic and quickly moved to the rank of Field Training Officer where, for three years, he helped train and develop Paramedics for the company. Tony’s can-do attitude was noticed by management and he was promoted to Operations Supervisor in 2010. When a Regional Director position for Smith County became available in 2018, Tony’s attention to detail and good rapport with the operations staff made him the perfect candidate.

Tony’s passion for the job and those he works with continue to earn praise and to impress his coworkers and the first responders he works with daily. His dedication to the people he serves and the employees he oversees make him an asset to the community. UT Health East Texas EMS is proud to call Tony Hernandez its 2019 Star of Life.

Richard is the type of Paramedic who always serves his patients and coworkers with respect, understanding, compassion, and dignity. Richard started his career with ETMC EMS in December 1991, and he is still rocking the streets to this day with the same demeanor he started with.

Not only has Richard touched the lives of countless patients, he has also gained countless friendships with the everyday folk he comes in contact with. His addictive humor makes it easy to get caught up in his stories, no matter how many times you’ve heard them.

Over the past years, Richard has had a great influence on new and seasoned EMS personnel as a Field Training Officer. Richard enjoys sharing his past experiences, whether they are good or bad, to help the crews stay safe. As he talks about the past, you will always hear him say, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

Richard has always been a great asset to his EMS family and deserves recognition for going above and beyond in an effort to make every day better for the future.