Cracks in My Heart: Forty Years as a Volunteer in Aberdeen

By Judy Hinch

In 1975, just after experiencing a divorce, author Judy Hinch was looking for something to occupy her days. At the same time, the fire department in Aberdeen, Maryland, amended its bylaws to allow women to join its ranks. Her decision to become a recruit altered her life in many ways.

In Cracks in My Heart, she shares her story of serving more than forty years as a firefighter, EMT, and paramedic. Hinch offers insight into the lives of men and women emergency first responders who witness mind-numbing ugly things, horrid human behavior, and rarely a kind act or beautiful ending.

From fires to train accidents to suicides and disorderly activities, Cracks in My Heart details some of the events and adventures Hinch experienced while serving her town as a volunteer. She discusses the sacrifices, the tragedies, the rewards, and the people she met on duty, describing why she often gave her heart to strangers.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Apr 25, 2017
• ISBN: 9781480845992

Judy Hinch

Judy Hinch has worked for forty years as a firefighter, EMT, and paramedic in Aberdeen, Maryland, where she remains an active volunteer in the community.

Book preview

Cracks in my Heart

Forty Years as a Volunteer

in Aberdeen

Judy Hinch

32364.png

Copyright © 2017 Judith Scott Hinch.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Archway Publishing

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4808-4598-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-4599-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017905477

Archway Publishing rev. date: 04/24/2017

Acknowledgement

This book is to acknowledge my firehouse brothers, uncles, fathers, grandfathers, and a few sisters that share this journey.

We volunteer, give our hearts to strangers, lose sleep, miss meals, family celebrations, and don’t think when we take risks.

There are thousands of us across America. We are a large dysfunctional family that argues, judge each other, sometimes harshly, but share a deep love and caring for each other.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to Kevin Heckman who made me believe in miracles.

A portion of my royalties will be donated to his gofundme; Christmas Day changed Kevin’s life. These funds will be used to purchase equipment to improve his mobility. He is a paraplegic due to the accident. Readers are encouraged to donate any amount they can afford to help Kevin.

For more information about Kevin, contact Karen Taylor Heckman, Bridgeton, NJ. (his grandmother) via Facebook.

To contact the author via Facebook: Judy Hinch, Aberdeen, Md.

Contents

My Amazing Journey

Beginnings

Volunteering

A Brush with Death

Experience with Disorderly Activities

Lessons Learned

Suicide Is Unsettling

How Important Something Is, Is Relative

Painful Memories

Flashbacks

Pediatrics

Too Hot for Me

Not Scared

Learning about Death

Just Saving a Life

The Baby Miracle

You Scream, I Scream

Rescue the Kittens

Cats and Dogs Rescued

A Special Christmas Gift

Old-School Man: Aberdeen Police Memories

Curious Call

Childhood Memories

Things That Made Me Who I Am

Great Experiences of My Childhood

Who I Was

Hard Work

Family

Motherhood

Living through History

Recent Thoughts

Cancer

The Destructive Power of Natural Gas

Disclaimer

My Amazing Journey

As I began this journey in 1975 and am continuing now in 2017, many thoughts keep pushing forward. No one outside the profession understands the life of a first responder, emergency medical technician (EMT), paramedic, police officer, or firefighter. We see mind-numbing ugly things, horrid human behavior, and rarely a kind act or beautiful ending. Many of our endeavors end with someone’s death and the resulting fallout with the family. There are few happy endings and no closure for the provider who has worked very hard for positive outcomes and has little control over the finality of death.

Once, after losing a patient I had taken care of for many years, I went into the bathroom in the emergency department and cried. When I emerged, a very wise nurse confronted me and said, It’s not your job to choose who survives. It’s God’s power, so just learn to let go. Easier said than done for me. I joke that I find it easy to bond even with an earthworm on a sidewalk.

Be kind