CHARLES COUNTY, Md. – Trollinger Law Firm sponsored a 1st Responders Night at the Regency Furniture Stadium, home of the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, on Saturday, September 9th. The firm, headed by Matt Trollinger, is in its 4th Annual Hometown Heroes Awards and scheduled this game for the ceremony, presenting the winners their plaques and monetary prizes.
Hometown Heroes recognizes community members who go “above and beyond the call of duty,” and peers and locals can nominate someone who exemplifies these qualities.
Desptite the game being called off by 7:00 p.m., due to weather conditions, Trollinger Law and crowds of Fire & Rescue, EMS/EMT, Police Departments, and community members came out to recognize these heroic people.
The three winners are listed below, so take a moment to share their stories!
Meet our Heroes:
Diane Mangel – Mechanicsville Volunteer Rescue Squad (MVRS)
Diane serves as a certified emergency medicine technician and secretary at MVRS. Her work ethic and compassionate spirit make her a perfect candidate for the Hometown Hero award. Her passion for MVRS and serving the community reverberated via the phone. She did not just enjoy what she did; she loved it. She is a gatekeeper to all things MVRS for so many in southern Maryland.
While COVID-19 sidelined Diane from actively riding in the ambulance, she never stopped supporting the efforts of MVRS in her role as secretary. Her attention to detail and passion is unmatched. She manages the daily life of MVRS by ensuring no deadlines are missed, and the paperwork is submitted promptly and grammatically correct. Now that the surge of COVID-19 subsided, Diane returned to the ambulance. She is a mentor and great leader for all those she encounters. She has set the standard for how to be of service. Diane is always available to give a helping hand. Her commitment, character and conduct are an exemplary example of a Hometown Hero. She puts others’ needs before her own and is invested in her community. Her compassion is infectious. The world is better because of her willingness to serve others.
Christian Merchant – Newburg Volunteer Rescue Squad
Christian applied for membership with the Newburg Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department on November 6th, 2019, and was fully accepted as a department member in May 2020. In the four years with the Newburg Volunteer Rescue Squad, he successfully took and passed his MFRI Firefighter I and II and obtained many smaller courses, including his required Incident Command System courses and Hazmat Ops and Awareness. Almost equally, if not more importantly, he obtained his Maryland Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) certification. Before he took his EMT course, Maryland EMS had switched to a new testing system. They enacted the National Registry examination, which, as it is titled, is recognized at the national level, with most only needing to take their local protocols or petition for a certificate in the state of their choosing.
In the following years through the present, he has gone on to become one of the top runners of the Newburg Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department organization – through many challenges like COVID, and even more increasingly time-consuming, when he decided he wanted to continue his EMS education and attempt to earn his Paramedic certification. He ultimately went through the state of Virginia to obtain his Paramedic certification, as his first attempt was unsuccessful, but more importantly, he never gave up.
Some people never receive these awards, and he has received one twice. Given all that Christian did and continues to do, by devoting many hours manning the station while taking the above training, on top of running the endless amounts of calls that he did, in between daily schooling for hours upon hours, he naturally was hooked and decided about a year and a half ago that he wanted to become a career fireman.
Sherry Weiss – Mechanicsville Volunteer Rescue Squad
Sherry joined Mechanicsville Volunteer Rescue Squad in January of 2021. Since she joined, she has received her EMT Certification and just recently received her EVOC (Emergency Vehicle Operator certification) certification. Sherry this year has also taken over our Orientation Program and welcomes new members with open arms.
An example of a first responder, always on duty though not on call, recently occurred when Sherry and her family flew from DC to Florida for a much-needed vacation. Not so soon after takeoff, a passenger went into cardiac arrest, unconscious. Sherry jumped right in and started doing CPR. The plane made an emergency landing in Richmond, VA, and the patient was alive and talking to them when they took the patient off the plane. Sherry is a GREAT asset to Mechanicsville Volunteer Rescue Squad and our greater Southern Maryland community. [1]
Please identify the other folks in the group photos. Thanks.