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By the time he was 13, Tim Marr had
his sights set on helping others. An EMT for 8
years, he was instrumental in bringing the First
Responder Program to Carroll County along with
Methodist McKenzie EMS Director Chuck Latimer. |
When Tim Marr was 17 and a junior at McKenzie High
School, he already had a firm vision of his future. He was
active in the "Just Say No" program and in Future Farmers
of America, but it was as an Eagle Scout with the Boy
Scouts of America that he got his first taste of the
medical emergency field, earning merit badges in first
aid, emergency preparedness and safety. He was also a
member of the Emergency Services Explorer unit in McKenzie
that allowed him to work as a teenager with the Fire
Department, Police Department, Rescue Squad and Ambulance
Service.
As an Explorer Scout with the Fire Department, Tim says,
"We went to fires, took firemen water to drink, and washed
hoses and fire trucks." As children, the Explorers did
what they could do to help.
He was just 13 when, having been exposed through his work
with the law enforcement and rescue organizations to the
dangers and prevalence of drugs and alcohol among teens,
he and best friend Lester McCaleb staged their first "Mock
Disaster Drill" in front of the high school. Entitled
"Prom Night", the event highlighted the dangers of teens
mixing drugs and alcohol with driving. The boys made the
scenario as real as they could, garnering the support of
scrap yard owners, who provided wrecked cars, and
students, who portrayed the victims of the accident. The
boys used props to make the children's injuries as
realistic as possible. Emergency and police units
responded to the scene as they would a real accident, and
parents cooperated by rushing to the scene to "discover"
whether their own children were involved.
The event was repeated each spring for years, but Tim
still saw a rise in drug use, so he began presenting drug
awareness information to high school students while
providing fire prevention information to children in
kindergarten through fifth grade.
Tim and Lester found out how important their contributions
were when they were at the fire department one day and
heard the dispatcher announce a boy had been hit by a car.
Tim and Lester rushed to the scene of the accident and
found the boy lying in front of the car. They comforted
him and kept him calm until ambulances could arrive.
Because of his activism, he was selected twice, when he
was 16 and 17 years old, to travel to Washington, D.C. as
a Youth Ambassador during the National Children's Day
celebration. He was the only representative from Tennessee
among 150 other youths from across the country who
traveled to Washington for the week's events that, in his
second year, included meeting President and Mrs. George
Bush, Vice President Dan Quayle, Senators Jim Sasser and
Al Gore, Jr. and Congressman John Tanner.
While still a teen, Tim had the opportunity to use some of
the skills he learned when a little boy who lived on West
Walnut Street.
Tim set his sights early on to become a "fireman/EMT/paramedic"
and outlined his personal philosophy of service to his
fellow man. Said 17-year-old Tim, "We live in a complex
and hurried world; it is important for all people to look
beyond themselves and dedicate themselves to serve their
families, their friends, and make our community a safe and
better place to live."
Ten years later, Tim has made good his commitment, now in
his eighth year as an EMT. He worked with the Baptist
Emergency Medical Services in Huntingdon for three years
before continuing his career closer to home at Methodist
McKenzie's EMS, where he has worked five years. He still
works for Baptist EMS part-time, as well as working
part-time for Henry County EMS, Gibson County EMS, and
Weakley County EMS besides working at R-and-R Farms in
McKenzie, where he "drives tractors, cotton pickers - I do
it all out at the farm," he grins.
Tim is also a board member and secretary of the First
Responders, an organization set up in Carroll County by
Tim and the director of EMS Services at Methodist EMS,
Chuck Latimer. Other board members are the administrators
from the McKenzie and Huntingdon hospitals; two emergency
services personnel from each hospital (with Tim and Chuck
serving from the Methodist Hospital); County Executive
Kenny McBride; Law Enforcement representative, Sheriff
Bendell Bartholomew; and Janice Newman, Emergency
Management Agency Director. With graduates of the first
responder classes now in place, a first responder will be
added to the team.
Tim says it took about a year to get the program going. He
and Chuck drew up the by-laws and rules and regulations
for the program, as well as the standing orders for
procedures, aided by information from another successful
First Responder program. Tim, Chuck and another EMT,
William Bullington, were certified as First Responder
instructors; then, using grant monies, bought 30 "jump
bags" - soft-sided medical bags filled with supplies and
equipment - to distribute to first responders across the
county. In addition to the jump bags, the organization has
eight automatic external defibrillators in various
locations around the county.
Grant monies also provided a communication system with a
radio/pager provided to every first responder. In the
event of a trauma-related accident or illness, first
responders are "paged out" according to their proximity to
the emergency.
"They're trained in basic first aid, bandaging wounds,
administering oxygen, and CPR," Tim said. "They take care
of the person until Baptist or Methodist (EMS Services)
can get on the scene."
Tim illustrated the need for the First Responder
organization in terms of minutes, because the time it
takes for emergency personnel to arrive on the scene of a
traumatic accident or heart attack can mean the difference
between life and death.
"The way the ambulances are located, from here to Atwood
it can take 15 to 20 minutes (for an ambulance) to arrive,
but now that we've got first responders, we can have a
medically trained person there within five minutes," Tim
explained. "From Huntingdon to Cedar Grove the estimated
time of arrival is 20 to 25 minutes, but first responders
over there can be on the scene in five minutes and they're
actually treating the patient while the ambulance is en
route."
Once the ambulance arrives, the first responders become an
"extra pair of hands" for EMS personnel, sometimes
assisting in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
The second class of 16 first responders just completed
their training and are awaiting licenses, after which they
will join the ranks of the first 16 graduates, giving
Carroll County a total of 32 first responders. They need
more, Tim says, and for now, the training is free.
"For the next two years we'll train anybody who wants to
be a first responder at no cost to them, just so we can
get the First Responder program started; we always need
volunteers,' he said.
This week is National EMS Week, a time when EMS personnel
seek to educate the public about their services and when
citizens take time to recognize the contributions and
sacrifices made by the men and women who choose to be
ready to assist others when accidents or health
emergencies arise.
At Methodist McKenzie EMS, Tim's fellow workers include
paramedic/Director Chuck Latimer, paramedics Brian Baker,
Derek Merritt, Mike Balius, Patrick Petronico, Brinnen
Murray and Leisa Wright, and EMT-IV's William (Bull)
Bullington and John Davis.
The Methodist McKenzie EMS Team: 1st
row: Leisa Wright, Brinnen Murray, John Davis, and
Brian Barker. 2nd row: Tim Marr, Derek Merritt,
William (Bull) Bullington, Chuck Latimer, Mike
Balius, and Patrick Petronico. |
Employees of the Emergency Services units typically
work three people per 24-hour shift with another person on
call. With emergencies arising any time of the day or
night, "you don't get to lay down and sleep like normal
people do; you kind of take naps when you're not busy.
With EMS, if there's a chance you can get rest it's
probably best because you never know what's going to
happen," Tim says.
Being away from his family for 24-hour stretches or more
is the hardest part of his job, Tim relates, but he
stresses his wife is part of the reason he is successful
in his work.
"I wouldn't be where I'm at right now without her," he
says, "I've had a lot of support from my wife and my
parents."
It was at an accident during Greenfield's Fire Prevention
Day in October 1992 that Tim met the former Melodie Box
when he was a member of the McKenzie Fire Department. The
morning had been cold but once he arrived at the accident
to assist the EMS personnel he was hot, and threw his
jacket aside. When the work was done, he found Melodie had
picked up his jacket and was holding it for him. "I asked
her out and things went from there," he smiles.
The couple will be married 8 years this December. Their
son, Brennan, already has it in his heart to be a fire
fighter and EMT. "He first said he wanted to be a doctor,
then he said he wanted to be like his daddy," Tim beams.
Brennan's "whole room" is filled with fire trucks and
ambulances and he collects Fisher-Price Rescue Heroes. The
couple's second son, Ashton, is 16-months old.
It is no wonder Tim's son sees him as a hero. A couple of
year's ago, Tim was helping his father, Wayne, build cat
houses for the humane society when Wayne's arm was caught
in an electric miter saw.
"I was just happy to be there," Tim said. "I controlled
the bleeding while mother called the ambulance. They
showed up with two units (ambulances)."
Tim maintained pressure on his father's arm all the way to
the hospital where he received blood before being
transported to Vanderbilt due to concerns over the loss of
so much blood after having had two by-pass surgeries in
recent years.
"I guess it was by the grace of God that I was there," Tim
says gratefully.
Tim plans to attend paramedic school this fall to further
his education and meet another of the goals he set for
himself as a junior in high school.
Tim's parents are Wayne and Barbara Marr of McKenzie. His
sisters are Kim and Heather Marr and his brother is Tony
Marr, all of McKenzie. He is the grandson of Lawrence and
Bobbie Mullins of Martin, Annie Gallimore of Martin and
the late Emmett Marr.
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