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CCRS, Inc. 618 Lehman Street Woodbury, TN 37190 Members Email |
Cannon County Rescue Squad, Inc.Printable version of this Press Release (*.PDF, 235KB) Press Release August 2008 Rescue Squad Celebrates 30 years of Service
Pictured from Left to Right: President/CEO/Captain Michael Underhill, Chaplin Micheal George, County Executive Mike Gannon, Jr. McVay, Secretary/Treasurer/CFO Michael Thomas, Camia Hayes, Senior Vice President/1st Lieutenant Adam Hayes, Jay Hale, Sergeant Eric Campbell, Unit Director/COO Tim Bell, Sergeant Andy Parker, State Senator Mae Beavers, Ben Roberts, USDA Rural Development Upper Cumberland Director Joe Woody, USDA Area Specialist Jerry Jolley, and State Representative Stratton Bone, Jr. According the Chief Executive Officer, Michael Underhill, the Squad was formed and then chartered in May 1978 and is composed completely of community volunteers. In 1979, the Rescue Squad acquired the world famous “Jaws-of-Life”. For 30 years the Squad has been the only organization providing Rescue The Rescue Squad started with little more than a vision to provide Rescue Services to the citizens of Cannon County. According to charter members, the very first emergency response vehicle was an old, worn-out station wagon. Later, the Squad acquired a pick-up truck which had a utility bed attached and converted it to a Rescue Response Vehicle. The Squad also celebrated the arrival of their new rescue truck. They presented awards of appreciation to organizations and foundations that helped fund the project. “The new truck had a total price of $60,000.00 and we were able to acquire funding for all but $18,000”, said President/CEO/Captain Michael Underhill. He also said, “We hope that if our fund drive later this year is as successful as last year, we will be able to completely pay off the loan by the first of next year”. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provided a loan and grant for the project. Mr. Underhill went on to say that “I can’t stress enough how much we needed this truck to serve Cannon County. Our primary rescue truck was getting old and becoming harder to maintain. With the addition of this new truck we will be able to provide our services safer and more efficiently”. The following organizations received awards of appreciation for their involvement in helping to fund the new rescue truck: 
“We received a large portion of funding from the 2007 Tennessee Community Enhancement Grant Program”, said Tim Bell, Unit Director/Chief Operating Officer. He went on to say that “this grant was made possible by the State Legislators in the previous General Assembly. They passed a one time Grant Program of $23 million to fund non-profit organizations in Tennessee. Each organization that received grants had to make application through the Office of the Secretary of State. Many volunteer fire departments and rescue squads throughout Tennessee received funding for emergency equipment that would not have been available through any other programs. We received $10,000 toward the new rescue truck and $2,500 toward safety equipment. State Senator Mae Beavers and State Representative Stratton Bone, Jr. were more than helpful in our quest to file these grants”.
Rescue Squad Receives Grants
Pictured from Left to Right: Camia Hayes, Chuck Holt, Senior Vice President/1st Lieutenant Adam Hayes, Ben Roberts, Secretary/Treasurer/CFO Michael Thomas, Sergeant Eric Campbell, Ethan Curtis, Chaplin Micheal George, State Senator Mae Beavers, Jay Hale, Sergeant Andy Parker, Unit Director/COO Tim Bell, County Executive Mike Gannon, State Representative Stratton Bone, Jr., Jr. McVay, and President/CEO/Captain Michael Underhill Late last year the Rescue Squad filed a grant with the U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company (USSTC) for their annual Operation Ranger Donation Program. For the past seven years the USSTC has awarded utility vehicles, such as the Polaris Ranger® and John Deere Gators®, to emergency service agencies throughout the United States. According to USSTC corporate website at www.ustinc.com, “rangers are awarded through an open, competitive application process. The U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company Operation Ranger Program awards rugged, off-road utility vehicles to our nation’s emergency responders. To date, (August 2008) more than 400 vehicles have been awarded across all 50 states. The Operation Ranger Program exists both to recognize the service of our nation’s emergency responders and to provide a versatile, practical vehicle that will enhance emergency response capability at the community level”. “We are very grateful to the USSTC for awarding this Polaris Ranger® to the Rescue Squad”, said Tim Bell. He went on to say that “this utility vehicle will enhance our disaster preparedness and response, and our search and rescue capabilities. It will allow us to respond more effectively to off-road emergencies. The vehicle will also be made available to other emergency departments in Cannon County, as well as other units of the Tennessee Association of Rescue Squads”.
Pictured from Left to Right: Unit Director/Chief Operating Officer Tim Bell, Murfreesboro Sam’s Club General Manager Gerrie Livingston, and Assistant Manager Betty Zapata Also recently, the Rescue Squad received a grant for $1,000 from the Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club Foundation. This grant was made possible through their corporate office and is administered through each Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club location. The Squad made application with the Murfreesboro Sam’s Club, and was assisted by their Community Involvement Coordinator. The grant was used to purchase equipment at Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart stores to enhance the Squad’s search and rescue capabilities. The Squad received a global positioning system (GPS), flashlights, an outdoor canopy, and various other equipment that will be utilized during search missions and other emergencies. More information can be found on their corporate web site at http://walmartstores.com/CommunityGiving and at www.samsclub.com. The Squad has received several grants over the past two years, and these grants are being utilized to purchase equipment that we would have not been able to purchase without the generous support of these private foundations, state and federal grant programs. We also want to thank the loyal citizens and business owners of Cannon County that have financially supported our efforts to save lives. We have strengthened and expanded our service, and each and every member of the Squad has worked very hard to help protect the citizens of Cannon County. Thank you for helping us to help others. For gift giving opportunities or membership information, please contact President/CEO/Captain Michael Underhill at 615-904-5002, visit our web site at www.cannoncountyrescue.com or e-mail at tbell@cannoncountyrescue.com
 (Pictured left-to-right) Press Release 02/27/08 Rescue Squad Honors One of Their Own In their annual meeting in January, the Cannon County Rescue Squad honored Michael Underhill for 20 years of service. On hand for the meeting were members of the Rescue Squad, along with State Senator Mae Beavers, State Representative Stratton Bone, Jr. and County Executive Mike Gannon. Senator Beavers presented Underhill with a U.S. Flag that had been flown over the State Capital along with a certificate issued by the State Senate recognizing his many years of service to the Rescue Squad and Cannon County. Representative Stratton Bone, Jr. presented Underhill with a Tennessee State Flag that had been flown over the State Capital, along with a Proclamation issued by the State House of Representatives recognizing his many years of service. County Executive Mike Gannon was also on hand and presented Underhill with a Certificate of Achievement signed by Governor Phil Bredeson, and a plaque honoring his many years of service to the State of Tennessee and Cannon County. During the ceremony, Members of the Rescue Squad presented Underhill with a plaque and a clock honoring his 20 years of dedicated and loyal service to the Rescue Squad. Underhill became a member of the Rescue Squad in March 1987. Also honored at the event was Member Michael Hollandsworth. Hollandsworth was presented with a five year service patch for dedicating five years of his time to the Rescue Squad. Rescue Squad Receives Grants In 2007 the Tennessee State Assembly enacted a grant program for non-profit organizations in Tennessee. The 23 million dollar grant program, known as The Tennessee Community Enhancement Grant Program, was administered by the Secretary of State’s Office. After the ceremony the Rescue Squad was presented with two checks for grants that were filed with the grant program. The Rescue Squad filed for two grants with the program totaling $12,000.00. Senator Beavers presented the Squad with a check for $10,000.00 to go toward the purchase of the new Rescue Truck. Representative Bone presented the Squad with a check for $2,000.00 to go toward the purchase of safety equipment for Squad Members. In a statement from the Squad, “we did not expect to receive these grants” Underhill said. “These grants will purchase equipment that we couldn’t have afforded any other way. We are very thankful to Senator Beavers, Representative Bone and County Executive Gannon for helping to facilitate these two grants. Without the help and support of our two State Legislators and County Executive, these two grants would have likely been unfunded.” The Rescue Squad received two more grants in the last quarter of 2007 and in the first quarter of 2008. Middle Tennessee Electric Customer Care, Inc. gave a $1,200.00 grant to the Squad for the purchase of safety equipment for Squad Members. Middle Tennessee Natural Gas Hometown Help Program awarded the Squad with a $1,000.00 grant to purchase Rescue Equipment for the new Rescue Truck, which is expected to be delivered in March 2008. Tim Bell, Unit Director, stated that “we have been working very hard to acquire grant money to help purchase the new Rescue Truck and Rescue Equipment. The Squad has received several grants over the past two years, and these grants are being utilized to purchase equipment that we would have not been able to purchase without the generous support of these private foundations and state grant programs. We have strengthened and expanded our service, and each and every Member of the Squad has worked very hard to help protect the citizens of Cannon County. We also want to thank the citizens that have donated money to the Squad over the past year, and we want to thank the City Mayor and Alderman and County Commissioners for their continued support of our organization.” For gift giving opportunities or membership information, contact Captain Michael Underhill at |
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