Due to the recent tragedy, I have began to do alot of reflecting on my job as a dispatcher. I have been a dispatcher since I was 19 years old and have always had pride in my job. I began wondering, due to the effect that this one call has had on me personally, am I "getting soft"? Will I be unable to do my job from now on without making it personal or becoming biased? Do I fear that I will panic in the line of duty and not be able to get the job done? My answer to myself was a quick, unhesitatant "NO". During my soul searching, I figured out alot about myself.
One of the reasons that I said "NO", is that I think things like this actually make you a better dispatcher...and person. One of the things that is not a requirement to be a dispatcher (but should be), is emphathy.
When I first began dispatching, it was honestly because I needed a job, and as a criminal justice major, what better part time job could there be? Over the years, I have found that I do love my job. I have also discovered that the older I get, and the more of my life I live, I have come to care more and more everyday. I've always said "the moment you stop caring about the people you serve is the moment you need to find another job", and this is more true now than ever.
This empathy is something that we all need to embrace, and though we need to use it responsibly and with caution, it needs to be a part of our everyday life. I think that this emotional tool is the defining factor between a "good dispatcher" and a "great dispatcher". Not saying I'm great, but I would love to be...and I see nothing wrong with this being my ultimate goal.
One thing that resulted from this tragedy, personally, is to make me look deep into myself and realize just how important my job (and of course my loved ones, no job could ever be more important that them) actually is. This is actually pretty easy to forget sometimes when you have people ridiculing you, cussing at you, and even the occasional threat on a daily basis. I hate with everything that no matter how good of a job that we or anyone else did, that the outcome of this tragedy wasn't different. I will however, remember them everytime I pick up that phone and realize that I must do the best job that I can do to try to prevent it from happening again. Everyone plays a part...
Friday, March 11, 2011
Everything Happens For a Reason Part 1
Most of the time that I blog, post a status on Facebook, or upload pictures, it is usually to share with my friends and family events that have occurred, experiences I've shared, or to highlight the people in my life. However, sometimes just need to write, to share my thoughts and emotions in a way that can't be expressed through speech. This is one of those times...
One Monday, March 7, 2010, I went into work, expecting it to be a normal day. Usually on Mondays, we try to maintain patience while giving people copies of reports and trying not to forget fire test pages. After a couple of hours of the usual, receive a 911 call and the gentleman calling advised me of a "very bad" motor vehicle accident on Hwy 231, south of Troy. I asked the normal questions, "how many vehicles?, are there any injuries?, are either of the vehicles overturned?", as the other two dispatchers also began taking mutiple calls on the same accident. The response was automatic...rescue, ambulance, officers, etc were all en route within seconds and on scene within minutes. Unfortunately, the quick response time was just not good enough. Brittany Pugh, Theresa Adams, and Brittany's 15 month old son Shep were killed in the accident.
The hours that followed the accident were drearily long as we were slowly finding out the details and received the news of their passing. As a dispatcher, one of the first things that you want to do after dealing with something like this is to grab your loved one and hold them tight...
That night, as I lay down trying to sleep, of course I said a prayer for them and their families. It took a while for sleep to come that night and honestly, every night since.
I have taken calls from many people who have later passed away, had family members pass away, and even a couple that took their last breathe will talking to me. I, however, have never had a call affect me the way this one has. It may be the circumstances, the people involved, the fact that I took the first call, or maybe I now question my saving grace whenever something bad happens, which is "everything happens for a reason". I have dwelled on trying to find a reason for this tragedy, and so far, have been unsuccessful. I can only hope that their loved ones eventually come to understand the reason and that it gives them peace, even if I never do...
One Monday, March 7, 2010, I went into work, expecting it to be a normal day. Usually on Mondays, we try to maintain patience while giving people copies of reports and trying not to forget fire test pages. After a couple of hours of the usual, receive a 911 call and the gentleman calling advised me of a "very bad" motor vehicle accident on Hwy 231, south of Troy. I asked the normal questions, "how many vehicles?, are there any injuries?, are either of the vehicles overturned?", as the other two dispatchers also began taking mutiple calls on the same accident. The response was automatic...rescue, ambulance, officers, etc were all en route within seconds and on scene within minutes. Unfortunately, the quick response time was just not good enough. Brittany Pugh, Theresa Adams, and Brittany's 15 month old son Shep were killed in the accident.
The hours that followed the accident were drearily long as we were slowly finding out the details and received the news of their passing. As a dispatcher, one of the first things that you want to do after dealing with something like this is to grab your loved one and hold them tight...
That night, as I lay down trying to sleep, of course I said a prayer for them and their families. It took a while for sleep to come that night and honestly, every night since.
I have taken calls from many people who have later passed away, had family members pass away, and even a couple that took their last breathe will talking to me. I, however, have never had a call affect me the way this one has. It may be the circumstances, the people involved, the fact that I took the first call, or maybe I now question my saving grace whenever something bad happens, which is "everything happens for a reason". I have dwelled on trying to find a reason for this tragedy, and so far, have been unsuccessful. I can only hope that their loved ones eventually come to understand the reason and that it gives them peace, even if I never do...
Thursday, September 23, 2010
I've Been Saved By The Grace of Southern Charm...
Well after a long day, its finally time to sit down, relax, and write. Due to the fact that the past week has been pretty normal, this blog will be a short one. Today was cleaning and laundry day, and for some reason it always seems that it does by twice as fast as any other day, because I can never get everything done that needs to be done. I did manage to cook an awesome supper of fried chicken, potatoes au gratin, turnips, black eyed peas, cornbread, and for desert...strawberry shortcake!
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| Working on my Cookies & Cream Brownies I made a few weeks ago...another batch of Fudge Brownie mix went on top! |
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| Working on my Strawberry Shortcake |
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| "The Lazies": Starring Michael & Delta |
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| Dusty Likes Cake... |
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| Yum! |
Monday, September 20, 2010
Troy vs UAB 2010
Michael and I had planned a few months ago to travel to the Troy vs. UAB game that would be at Legion Field in B'Ham. We had planned to go up the night before to hang out with friends, but Zion Chapel's (my alma mater) homecoming was that Friday night, so we decided to just go up the morning of the game and come home afterward. We left Troy that morning and made it to the stadium around 1:00 p.m. and waited for the 3:00 kickoff. We were ahead the entire game until the last 10 seconds of the game when UAB came back and scored a touchdown to tie it up...then kicked a field goal for the win. Along with the ridiculous penalties that the refs called on Troy (13, for a loss of 119 yards, with UAB only having 3), the final touchdown was pretty much the result of the refs active imagination....and apparently that is all that is needed in college football nowadays. Needless to say, the ride home was not a celebratory one...BUT, we still had fun and look forward to them coming to Troy next year!! Victory will be ours! Go Trojans!
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| Legion Field |
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| Joel at the game |
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| Michael and I roasting at the game... |
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| Scoreboard before the game began |
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| UAB Blazer band |
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| Sound of the South! |
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| Touchdown? I think not... |
Kassey Bein Krafty
At the moment, the only thing that's really been going on for me is work, crafts, and football... I've taken up crafting as an inexpensive hobby and have put a few of the things I've made up for sale on Etsy.com, which is a site dedicated to helping to sell homemade or vintage items. I really like the site, because you can find alot of one of a kind gifts ideas. I've only made one sale so far, but I'm sure that will change once I find my niche and figure out exactly what I'm doing! lol. The following are some example of things that I've been fiddling with. Some, I'm pretty proud of, others, not so much...:)
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| My "Funky" Bag Clips - made out of clothespins, scrapbook paper, and Modge Podge |
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| "Classic" |
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| "Zebra" |
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| "Musical" |
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| "Au Courant" |
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| "Blossoms" |
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| Wall Hangings made of recycled CD cases, scrapbook paper, and ribbon - "Mod" |
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| These were made with jute..."Vintage Flowers" - I love using things that would normally be thrown away... |
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| "Plaid" |
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| 14 in Yarn Wreath / Blue & Brown |
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| 14 in Autumn Yarn Wreath |
Italy 2010 - Day 10
On our last full day in Italy, we said goodbye to our new friends. It was a bittersweet day, as we were soon to be coming home to see our families, but felt as though we were leaving a family behind... We took out group pictures, packed our things, and began our trek back to northern Italy, with a stop in Mantova. We performed at a church ran by Mirco and Paola. After our show, we still had a long drive back to San Lorenzo, were we would rest until our flight very early the next morning. We arrived in San Lorenzo at approximately 2:30 a.m. and had to leave for the airport at about 6:30 a.m. So I basically used that time to stay awake (to prepare myself to sleep on the plane), put my notes of the trip together, and watched the sunrise over the mountains... Amazing!
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| Vasto Group |
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Italy 2010 - Day 9
The ninth day was actually the only day that we went to what we would consider a department store. It was sort of like a mall on one side and a Wal-Mart on the other. I had to get a new battery for my camera since it had died the day before. We stopped a McDonald's for lunch. It was actually pretty amazing considering we had not had any "American" food for the past 9 days (not that the Italian wasn't wonderful!).We made our way down to San Cevera, which was an area like no other we had been to. It was still pretty, but it had more of a nervous type atmosphere. You could tell right away that we would not be as welcome there as we had been everywhere else. We were fed by some of the ladies of the church there....8 courses! We then performed in front of a clothing store on a small square area. After our show, we all thought we were going to die for a moment when they began their fireworks show. They used real gun powder and too much of it Everyone was much too close for the amount of fireworks they were using. You could feel the shock waves from each explosion. SCARY!
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| Yumm....chicken nuggets! |
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| Performing |
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| The crowd |
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| Heart of Hearts skit |
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| Michael as the Macho Man |
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| Me as the Hypocrite |
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