24 Cherokee Firefighters Graduate From Paramedic School

CHEROKEE COUNTY, GA — Twenty-four firefighters recently became paramedics after graduation ceremonies on Jan. 12 at the Cherokee Hall Auditorium in the Cherokee County Administrative Building.

Paramedic Program Director Randy Pierson said this group went through:

• 9,492 clinical hours of training
• Performed 1,300 pediatric patient assessments, 3,100 adult patient assessments, 1,775 geriatric patient assessments, 552 chest pains

• Administered 3,671 medications
• Started 2,556 IVs
• Intubated 201 live patients and 1,560 simulated patients

“When we started this course on Sept. 24 and 25 of 2020, I told the students this is a marathon and you will feel like it’s two days a week forever," Pierson said. "We started this course in the shadow of Covid hoping things would get better and they didn’t. We started the course offering the same class twice so that it was more accommodating and requiring less moves. Ultimately, we all made it to the end successfully.”

Cherokee County Fire Chief Tim Prather spoke about leadership and vision.

“Successful programs are usually a result of great leadership and vision," Prather said. "We could not have achieved the level of success we are fortunate to have today without our Medical Director, Dr. Jill Mabley and our Paramedic Program Director, Randy Pierson. They have brought a level of service excellence and training for pre-hospital emergency medical care that is practically unprecedented. They are bringing Cherokee County to the forefront of Advanced Life Support education."

Paramedic Program Deputy Director Kristina Wigington announced the recipient of the Dr. Jill Mabley Star of Life Award. The award was established to be given to a member of each paramedic class for academic achievement. The Star of Life Award was announced and presented to Paramedic Kevin McArthur.

The firefighters who graduated from the paramedic class and received their certificate of completion include: Robert Alberson, Connor Bourn, Anthony Ciorba, Amanda DeWoody, Randall Droke, Evan Groet, Nicholas Leslie, Josh Long, Eric Lusk, Trenton Mackey, Kevin McArthur, Eric Miller, Trevor Newberry, Paul Ribeiro, Kyle Ricker, Robert Romao, Lucas Vasquez, Micah Warren, Corey Webb, Justin Williams, Spence Williams, Drew Wilson and Michael Zuchegno.

After the presentation of the certificates, Wigington presented a Certificate of Service from the Georgia Department of Public Health to Tim Hicks, father of Justin Hicks, who was killed on Nov. 18, 2022, along with his wife, Amber. The certificate recognized Hicks for his eight year of service to the citizens of Georgia.

Pierson presented Hicks and other family members with a special plaque honoring his son’s Certificate of Completion from the paramedic class. After receiving the certificate, Hicks shook hands and congratulated every member of the class.