Lt. Eric B’Hymer, a 23-year veteran of the Iola Fire Department, was recognized Friday by the LaHarpe’s Veterans of Foreign Wars post as its Emergency Medical Technician of the Year.
The award is the first of what promises to be many from the local post, service officer Terese Yetzbacher said during a brief ceremony at IFD.
“We want to honor all of them,” Yetzbacher said, noting the biggest difficulty in setting up the award was determining which first responder from IFD deserved the recognition.
“I want everybody in this unit to get recognized for this service,” Yetzbacher said, noting the large number of veterans who receive aid through the fire department, either via firefighting, or from emergency medical services.
B’Hymer, an A-EMT (Advanced Emergency Medical Technician), said he was humbled to receive the award.
“We’re all a team,” he said. “I can’t do what I do without everybody else.
