By Meg Hibbert
Contributing Writer
Salem Rescue Squad’s more-than 90 years of volunteer service to the people of the Salem area is being celebrated in the Salem Museum’s latest exhibit.
“Service Through Knowledge: The History of the Salem Rescue Squad” is in the museum’s main gallery through early spring.
The valor and dedication of the scores of men and women now serving and those before them is honored in photographs, equipment and other memorabilia.
Members are proud that the Salem Rescue Squad is the oldest active volunteer rescue squad in the nation. It was founded in 1932. “And it’s the oldest continuously serving squad in the Virginia,” said Tim Gillinger, who is the squad’s personnel lieutenant.
“For the exhibit we provided older suction equipment, pictures from back to the 1940s and 1950s, photos of current members, trophies and awards” Dillinger said. “The museum staff did a really great job depicting the history from the beginning to today.”
The trophies include the award the squad received last year in New Orleans as Volunteer Agency of the Year, added Training Lt. Darlene Gee.
Gee, who is serving her 42nd year in emergency medical services, has been in the Salem Rescue Squad for 37 years. She joined when she was a junior at Salem High School. Initially she was a patient, who passed out from the heat while being a ride operator at the former Lakeside Amusement Park.
“The thing about the Rescue Squad is we really enjoy what we’re doing. We want the community to know we’re really involved,” Gee added. In addition to answering emergency medical calls, the squad has a medical aid tent and stands by at the annual Salem Fair and other events.
“We meet people who say things like ‘You helped my mom,’” said Gee.
Gillinger has been in the squads for two years, after 27 years in EMS, including the Army when he did a lot of medic work. His paying job teaching health science at Salem High School.
“I tell them, ‘You don’t go into rescue squad work because you want to get rich. You’ve got to want to be able to provide the best care.’
“I love medicine and being able to help people when they need it,” he added.
Gee, who is a squad Life Member, says she keeps on volunteering with the squad “Because I want to help people. I love it more now than the day I started. It’s a passion. I want to be able to comfort people, maybe in the last moments of their lives.” She has also been a critical care nurse.
Brian Sprouse has been a rescue squad volunteer for seven years. “In addition to helping people, I like the camaraderie. It’s a family atmosphere.”
He said what he would tell young people who might be interested in joining the squad, “I would tell them to stay focused and follow their dreams. If they haven’t yet signed up they should sign up for an Emergency Medical Technician class.” The squad holds those.
The Salem Rescue Squad exhibit at the museum allows visitors to walk through the evolution of rescue techniques and equipment, while emphasizing the squad’s crucial role in the Salem area’s safety and well being.
There is also information about how people can join the squad.
The Salem Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is in the historic Williams-Brown House located at 801 E. Main Street in Salem. Admission is free.