BACKGROUND: Marguerite Haaga is a paramedic, Emergency Medical Services instructor and member of the Killingworth Ambulance Association’s board of directors. She and her husband, Mike, live in Killingworth, but she works primarily in a busy system in Fairfield County, often in Bridgeport where she was born. She became a paramedic in 1989 and is a part of an adjunct faculty, teaching paramedic classes at Capital Community College.

Q: Why did you decide to become an EMT?

HAAGA: I took an EMT class as an easy “4” credit class back in 1978. Then, I started as a volunteer in the Stratford EMS.

Q: Did you and your husband become EMTs together or was one of you first?

HAAGA: Mike took the EMT class five years after I did.

Q: Did you have something to do with his decision?

HAAGA: Yes, the reason he became an EMT is that he couldn’t understand why, when we were going out for dinner, we’d be eating and then I’d go out on a call. So then we weren’t together.

Q: What happens if you get a call at midnight? Who goes — you, your husband or both?

HAAGA: If there is no second crew member that calls in, then at times we do calls together. We have done many emergency calls as a couple.

Q: What do you find challenging or rewarding about being an EMT?

HAAGA: As a paramedic, the challenge is assessing and treating the patient.

BACKGROUND: Mike Haaga is a paramedic, an EMS instructor and the KAA’s Chief of Service. He and his wife Marguerite, whom he met while the two attended the University of Connecticut, have lived in Killingworth since 1992.

Q: What’s the best thing about being an EMT?

HAAGA: Of course, the best part is when you actually save a life. However, in EMS the opportunity to save a life is rare, but the opportunity to impact a life is on every call.

Q: How many calls do you go on in a typical year?

HAAGA: I do 10 to 15 calls a year in Killingworth and around 300 a year as a paramedic.

Q: You and your wife, Marguerite, are EMTs. Did you do your training together?

HAAGA: No. She was an EMT when we met, but she was the main reason I became an EMT.

Q: What are the challenges of having both of you on call?

HAAGA: We try not to be on call at the same time. She is usually on call when I’m working evenings as a medic.

Q: How has being an EMT changed since you first got involved?

HAAGA: There have been many advances in emergency medicine over the past 30 years — with the most important that emergency medical services are finally being recognized as a legitimate part of the health-care team. We are more than “ambulance drivers.” We are health-care professionals.

BACKGROUND: Dan O’Sullivan is a 31-year resident of Killingworth who is the executive director of a non-profit, Diocese of Norwich Outreach to Haiti, as well as an active member of the St. Lawrence parish. He is involved in a number of civic organizations, including the Killingworth Lions Club, and is an EMT and president of the KAA.

Q: When and why did you decide to become an EMT?

O’SULLIVAN: I had been drawn to EMT work for a while but, with work and a number of outside interests, had never made the time to do it. There were really two aspects that drew me to it: First, I wanted to be able to help if I happened to be on the scene of an emergency. I didn’t want to be there and feel helpless. Second, having the knowledge put me in a position to help on an on-going basis, not just if I happened to be at the scene. When I (briefly) retired in 2012, becoming an EMT was a chance to learn and help that I couldn’t pass up. Of course, about the time I completed the training, I came across a job running a none-profit, Outreach to Haiti, that was also an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.

Q: What is it about the practice that you enjoy most?

O’SULLIVAN: First, there is a chance to really help people; to literally save lives. Second, there’s the mental stimulation. The training is comprehensive, and then you have to apply what you learn. Finally, there’s the chance to interact with people — the great people in the ambulance association, but also the patients. Helping someone when they are in extreme pain, discomfort or stress is a different type of interaction than you typically get and is very rewarding.

Q: What should people know about the KAA that they may not?

O’SULLIVAN: It is a completely volunteer organization, supported by the community and insurance payments, and one that can always use more EMTs. As you would expect, the ambulance is on call 24/7. We can use more EMTs to help fill those slots. The training is rigorous (as you would want) but not overwhelming, and the work is rewarding.

Q: You have so many other interests, how do you find the time to be an EMT and board president?

O’SULLIVAN: My children are grown, so that frees up time. But when you are really interested in something you find the time. Also, all the organizations that I’m involved in have a lot of great people in them. If you are pressed for time, they are always willing to step in and help. One of the interesting things, being involved in the activities I am, is meeting all the people in Killingworth that give enormous time and talent to the community. I feel blessed to be part of such a committed, caring community.

Q: What is the function of the KAA board and how are members chosen?

O’SULLIVAN: The KAA board provides oversight for the association. It has a governance and operational roles and helps raise funds, manage the money, equipment, training, etc., for the KAA. The board makes sure the needed resources are available and used in an effective and appropriate manner. The board is elected annually. It has a nominating committee that looks for people with interests and skills to help. The nominations are made in February, and members elect the board at the March meeting. Members are people who have committed a certain amount of time to the association as techs, members of the board or members of the board committees. People interested in getting involved in any way can always contact members of the association to express interest. You don’t need to wait for us to find you! And you don’t need to be an EMT to be a valuable member of our association.

BACKGROUND: Don McDougal has lived in Killingworth for nearly 50 years and, with a tenure that dates back to 1971, he is the most senior of all persons in or around the Killingworth Ambulance Association. Don is a member of the KAA’s board of directors.

Q: How long have you been involved with the KAA?

McDOUGAL: I responded to my first call with Killingworth on July 17, 1971 with Romaine Klein Robbenhaar and became an EMT about three years later. Forty-one years later, I was up for recertification and, instead of recertifying, I became a retired EMT.

Q: How different is it being an EMT today than when you first began?

McDOUGAL: The KAA only came into being in 1971. At that time, we went to Westbrook one weekend and took a first-aid/CPR class, and we were qualified to become ambulance attendants. We put the patient in the back of a Cadillac and flew to the hospital with very little patient care because we really didn’t have any training. About three years later, I took an EMT class, and I believe it was only the second class offered in this area. The class consisted of 80 hours, with one day at the Emergency Room at Middlesex Hospital. I took the EMT class at Middlesex Hospital.

Q: What did you like most about being an EMT?

MCDOUGAL: What I liked most is when you feel that you actually made a difference in someone’s life. It gives you a good feeling.

Q: Any favorite stories or memories?

McDOUGAL: That’s difficult, but one that comes to mind is when they wanted the attendants to start taking blood pressure. There was a lot of discussion about why we should take blood pressure and what were going to do with the information once we got it. Now it’s routine.

Q: What advice would you give someone interested in becoming an EMT?

McDOUGAL: Go for it. It can be very rewarding. You can make a difference in someone’s life, and that itself is rewarding.

BACKGROUND: Mark Clifton is the former president of the Killingworth Ambulance Association, a current member of the board, an EMT and the director of Deer Lake Camp. He has lived in Killingworth the past 40 years and was recently named Killingworth’s Citizen of the Year by the local Lions’ Club.

Q: Why did you become an EMT?

CLIFTON: Because I had a couple of incidents at the camp when I just started that were beyond the realm of my first-aid training. I knew I needed to get more training, so I took an EMT course. That was in 1983.

Q: What’s the best part of being an EMT?

CLIFTON: Just being able to help people at a time when they’re distressed. Threre’s a mutual trust that we share. It’s just being able to help your neighbor.

Q: What should people know about being an EMT?

CLIFTON: They all give a lot of their personal time,  they’re dedicated and they’re serving the community. I get a kick out of all these lawmakers that say they’re serving the community. Heck, they’re getting paid! These people … the fire community, the ambulance association … these people really serve the community, and it’s a wonderful thing to see that in a community like Killingworth.

Q: What should people know about being part of a volunteer force in a small town?

CLIFTON: The neat thing in the small town is the sense of community. Everyone is helping everyone else. But we need more techs. When the kids are home from school — when all the EMTs are young and home from school — we’re pretty flush with techs. But this time of year (winter) it’s pretty much two or three who are doing the calls. So it’s kind of stressful.

Q: And many of those calls are in the middle of the night, correct?

CLIFTON: Correct. All hours.

Q: You were the Killingworth Citizen of the Year. How meaningful is that to you?

CLIFTON: It’s just huge. My parents were very active in community service. I strive to try to get my kids in that realm. My daughter is an EMT. She’s looking to serve down in New Jersey (she moved there last year), but I think my parents would be real proud to know that I’m carrying on that tradition of service. They were more focused around the church. I did the church thing with my kids, and now this has become my church.