PHILIP ECKERBERG
Nspire Today! Feature Writer
Shawn Baumgartner is the operations manager for Valley Ambulance Company, and he’s also the manager for Regional West Emergency Medical Services.
Q: Talk about how you got involved in EMS.
BAUMGARTNER: “That started when I was 16. At the time, my brothers were all volunteer firefighters in a small community in the Black Hills outside of Rockerville, South Dakota. We had a ranch, and basically, I was kind of a geeky kid. I spent more time with my nose in books. They said I needed to get involved, so that is kind of how it started. I joined the fire department when I was 16 because you could back then, and it went from there. When I was 19, I joined the Pennington County Search and Rescue. My brother was also involved in that. That is how I became an EMT (emergency medical technician). From there, I moved into town off the ranch. I was a member of the Rapid Valley Volunteer Fire Department. I got married and moved back to the ranch for a short period of time, and then I ended up in Alliance for four or five years with the Alliance Fire Department. That was my first full-time job. I was both a firefighter and EMT for Alliance. While I was there, I went to paramedic school. After paramedic school, I took a job at Rawlins, Wyoming, for two years. The last year I was there, I was director of the service. I then came to Scottsbluff to work for Valley Ambulance. I have been here ever since.”
You can read the entire story in the March 2023 issue of Nspire Today! magazine. A one-year subscription (12 issues) is only $20. You may sign up for a subscription by sending $20 to Nspire Today!, P.O. Box 454, Scottsbluff, NE 69363, or you may pay with a credit card by calling 308-220-8865.
The current issue of Nspire Today! magazine is available at locations listed below.
