GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Public safety communicators in Brown County were honored Wednesday for their hard work and dedication though out the year.
9-1-1 dispatcher Amber Castro was presented the Samaritan Life Award for talking a couple through the unexpected early delivery of their daughter.
The event happened in a De Pere Walmart parking lot on the morning of May 5th, 2016.
Calls like that don’t come in every day.
“It was a very exciting call. I had actually just started my shift, so it was just about 2:00 in the morning and I just sat down. It was my first call of the day,” explains Castro.
Castro describes who was on the on the other line.
“It was a father, very calm. He did a great job. He was traveling on 41 coming into the county and advised that his wife was not going to make it to the hospital. So he pulled over in the De Pere in the Walmart parking lot and we took it from there.”
Matt and Erin Harris of Neenah, with the help of two police officers and Castro, helped deliver baby Julia into the world safely that day.
Castro got to meet baby and mom at the awards ceremony.
Castro was just one of many people honored for their dedication and service.
Here’s a list of other award recipients:
- Quiggles Spirit Award: Matt Hurst
- Telecommunicator of the Year: Jennifer Conley
- Lead Telecommunicator of the Year: Heather Patek
- Customer Service Award: Nancy VanVonderen
- Samaritan Life Awards: Harris Family, Telecommunicator Amber Castro, De Pere Officer Jacob Nowak, De Pere Officer Nathan Mrstick, LT Dan Gatz, Firefighter/EMT Jade Witt, Firefighter/Paramedic Neal Schwiener, Firefighter/EMT Rick DeWeert
This week is National Telecommunicators Week.
