TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Southern Arizona Rescue Association spends thousands of hours on rescue missions each year—all volunteered hours.
Their training to become an “orange shirt” rescuer takes about one year of hands-on classes and exercises.
As the sun goes down, most people are driving home from work, but this group of electricians, nurses, teachers, marking managers—they’re volunteering their free time to become a certified rescuer.
“If you get into trouble and you need help, it's just such a luxury that we have to have people that would come and help you. I’d like to be a part of that,” said Rachelle Tomei.
Rachelle Tomei is a physician’s assistant during the day.
“I was in surgery all morning, operating on a young child, and then dropped them off in the ICU, rode my bike home and came here,” said Tomei.
Tomei wanted to combine her love for the wilderness and medicine in her spare time.
“I think all of us that have been out in the outdoors, know what that feels like when you feel like you're lost, and no one will ever find you again,” Tomei said.
Amy Mcpherson has been a rescuer with SARA for four years. She volunteers about 500 hours each year.
She said it’s not hard to recruit rescuers, but to retain them because of the time commitment outside of their jobs.
“Orange shirts are full rescuers and are fully qualified rescuers. That took me about a year to do. It took me three months of our initial training and then it took another nine months to complete my training,” said Mcpherson.
Helicopter operations filled one of the three times a week trainees meet in the beginning of their process.
While the job doesn’t come with a financial reward, Tomei and the other volunteers in the group said the reward of getting to help others in the community is enough.
“If I get to be a part of helping somebody, that would be great and it would make all of this worth it,” Tomei said.
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Faith Abercrombie is a reporter for KGUN 9. Before coming to KGUN, Faith worked as a videographer for the Phoenix Children's Hospital Foundation and as a reporter and producer on the youth suicide documentary, "Life is..." on Arizona PBS.
Share your story ideas with Faith by emailing faith.abercrombie@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, or Twitter.
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