This past Friday, we took a trip to be with the Horry County Fire Rescue recruit training class currently underway in Conway. It was especially pleasing to see sixty-three new members of HCFR as they go through their initial training before becoming full-fledged members of the department.
Normally, HCFR brings their recruit class to Charleston where we provide them with a behavioral health class, a trip to the North Charleston Fire Museum, and a tour of the Charleston 9 Memorial Park. Due to the large class, we instead introduced our Team to them, gave them a virtual tour of the Charleston 9 Memorial Park and presented our behavioral health awareness program to them. We were fortunate to have Eric Stephenson, the Executive Director of the First Responders Peer Support Network in Eastern North Carolina, share his story and the development of the North Carolina program. We have developed a partnership with them to enhance both of our Teams’ ability to take better care of those we serve, and we were pleased to have him join us.
Lastly, the day was a trip back in time for me personally. I was born in Conway and attended grades one through six in the former Conway Grammar School back in the 1950’s. The school has now been renovated to be the Horry County Library. The old school auditorium has been restored and we used the space to accommodate the large recruit class. I actually stood in the same spot on the stage where I had done many times during plays and programs65 years ago! Also, I invited my old friend Mickey Blanton to come sit in. He and I became friends in the first grade and went through all six grades together. During the breaks he and I roamed the halls of the old school and visited several of our classrooms from days gone by. We also visited the former principal’s office where we unfortunately spent a great deal of time in the old days.
It was an amazing day, and we thank our HCFR brothers and sisters for allowing us to be a part of the day.
Gerald