Publisher’s Letter: Our Heroes in Time

By Blaine Howerton, Publisher
North Forty News

At this unprecedented time in our nation’s history (at least in our lifetimes), we recognize and honor the many people who are continually on the front lines working in essential services serving the needs of us all.

Whether working directly in medical services, in public transit, in pharmacies, in hardware stores, in supermarkets, post offices or all the many people who work so hard to keep all of those places clean and sanitized so the rest of us benefit from a greater measure of safety — we salute you all!

And while there may be people who gave the full measure of devotion in the service of others whom we may not know about, recently, we were saddened to hear of the loss of a true Hero — Colorado Paramedic Paul Cary, 66 years old.

Paul Cary was already a distinguished member of society. For 30 years he had worked as a skilled and seasoned firefighter and paramedic with the Aurora Colorado Fire Department.

His family described Paul as a kind, dedicated human being who was extremely devoted to his work in saving the property and the lives of others. His colleagues described him as reliable and generous.

Having spent a lifetime helping and caring for others, when Paul heard the call for volunteers from around the country to come and help the sorely strained workers on the front lines in New York City, he signed up to go.

Paul arrived in New York City on April 1 to help first responders transport patients between medical sites and respond to a record number of sick calls — at its peak, more than 6,000 calls a day!

Around April 21, Paul was admitted to Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx with Covid-19 symptoms and he died on a ventilator on April 30.

Paul was the first line of duty death of a FEMA deployed volunteer. He leaves behind 2 sons and 4 grandchildren. Our most sincere condolences go out to Paul’s family, friends, and coworkers.

We may marvel at the calibre of a person who continually puts the welfare of others before their own — routinely, firefighters like Paul do this.

But during a pandemic front line workers are out there doing their jobs every day so that we continue to benefit from essential services and so that the rest of us can stay “safer at home.”

We acknowledge you all and we thank you all for your service.

May you all be safe.

May you all be well.

—————————

LOCAL NEWS IS A PUBLIC GOOD.

Help us report on the new local reality!

Support our work on your behalf:

Make a tax deductible donation to support coronavirus coverage in our communities at:

https://northfortynews.com/donate-now

For our current subscribers, driveway delivery of North Forty News is now available within a reasonable distance to state highways and urban areas.

Current subscribers, register at:

https://northfortynews.com/driveway-delivery/

New and returning subscribers, register at: 

https://northfortynews.com/subscribe

Or contact us at ads@northfortynews.com to learn more about advertising with us including how your ad in our print edition will also show up in our online digital replica of our current edition along with on our website.

Blaine Howerton

Support Northern Colorado Journalism

Show your support for North Forty News by helping us produce more content. It's a kind and simple gesture that will help us continue to bring more content to you.

BONUS - Donors get a link in their receipt to sign up for our once-per-week instant text messaging alert. Get your e-copy of North Forty News the moment it is released!

Click to Donate