Page 56 - Cityview_Jan_Feb_2014

CHARITY SPOTLIGHT

by mark Spurlock

EAST TENNESSEE’S

OTHER VOLS:

Knoxville Volunteer

Emergency Rescue Squad

E

mergency!—With straight-up skills. Last year that effort totaled more alone is now more than $50,000 per
blue eyes and built wiry like a than 50,000 hours—the equivalent of year, and purchasing a medium-duty

veteran shortstop, Matt Jenkins about 25 full-time employees. by far truck costs about $160,000. The service
has been a rescue volunteer since the organization’s most common duty operates from four buildings, one in

he was 15 years old, so he long
is vehicle extraction. “Whenever some- each of the four geographic regions
ago learned to think about that abstract one [at a traffic accident] in the county of Knox County—north, south, east,

exclamation in flesh-and-bone, real-time dials 911,” says KVERS deputy Chief and west. Two of its facilities are brick
terms. To him it means that while most John Whited, “the procedure is to send and mortar—one of which is still being

East Tennesseans are settling in for a a fire truck, an ambulance, and a rescue paid for—and the other two temporary,
weekend with their family, he might truck. People don’t always realize that manufactured-home-type structures.

find himself in a wetsuit in the black and we’re that third vehicle and bring with “When you see our budget compared
marrow-chilling winter waters at the us the ‘jaws of life.’ If we’re on the to others, it’s not even a blip on the

bottom of the Tennessee River.
scene first, though, we’re also capable screen,” says Whited. “but if you want
“You’re sitting with your family—and of everything first responders normally volunteers to feel valued, you need to

you get that call,” he says. “And that do. In an emergency it’s ‘all hands on provide adequate resources. We have
means you’re going to be all day on and deck,’ and we’ll transport the injured maybe one tenth of what we need.”

in the water.”
or do anything else as needed.” out of besides about $200,000 from Knox
Jenkins is a rescue diver for the the approximately 2,500 calls KVERS County and another $40,000 from the

Knoxville Volunteer Emergency Res- receives each year, more than 2,000 are City of Knoxville, KVERS has the unit-
cue Squad (KVERS), which provides motor vehicle accidents.
ed Way of greater Knoxville (uWgK)

primary technical rescue services to In its more than half century of ser- to thank for its continued existence.
both Knox County and Knoxville. div- vice, KVERS has grown from fewer than “We couldn’t survive,” says Whited,

ing rescues and recoveries are only one a dozen guys with a converted bread “without the more than $100,000 we
part of KVERS’ mission, and Jenkins’s truck to approximately 150 volunteers receive from the united Way and the

unit only one of the seven specialty and an annual budget of more than exposure they give us within the com-
teams the squad fields. others include $350,000, according to Whited. he munity. We still struggle, but financially

cave and vertical rescuers, wilderness attributes the squad’s longevity both to we would not be here today without
search and rescue, and disaster and a need and community support. “The united Way support. We have a great

medical services.
need has always been there,” he says, relationship with them and partner
Knox County designates the rescue “but Knox County has never established with them constantly.”

squad an essential service, the same
a formal department.”
as the sheriff’s office or fire depart- Not having to pay its volunteers LITTLE WILL AND HIS LEGACY

ment, even though—except for a single means the organization can devote Jenkins and the dive unit typically
administrative assistant—everyone at almost its entire budget to equipment, are called out 15 to 20 times a year. As

KVERS donates his or her time and
training, and fuel. Whited says fuel
a volunteer organization, KVERS can

54 cityviewmag.com maRcH aPRiL 2014