Staff report

GREENVILLE — As the nation celebrates National EMS Week all next week, Spirit EMS is publicly inviting the community to their celebration of 15 years of service to western Ohio and eastern Indiana.

Owners Brian K. Hathaway and Aaron L. Guthrie have extended an invitation to the entire community to join the Spirit family for a celebration on Sunday, May 15, 2022, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at their main office located at 5484 S State Route 49, in Greenville.

Not only will the event feature food trucks from Mike’s Concessions, Bohndox Pizza Concessions and Kona Ice, but numerous other family-friendly activities have also been planned. Kona Ice will begin serving free ice to the first 100 guests beginning at 2 p.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Starting at 1 p.m., aircraft from CareFlight and MedFlight will be on hand followed by a vehicle extrication demonstration by the Greenville City Fire Department.

While there will be a DJ on site throughout the afternoon, starting at 2 p.m. the high school Taiko drummers from Mississinawa Valley will perform.

Starting at 2:30 p.m., there will be the opportunity for children of all ages to enjoy a petting zoo put together by members of the Greenville FFA. Complimentary bouncy houses, kids’ games, and face painting will also be available. Also featured will be a “Smash an Ambulance” event, where people can donate to the Cancer Association of Darke County and make their mark using a sledgehammer to bust up a retired ambulance.

From 2:30 p.m. until 5 p.m., Spirit personnel will give tours of its main facility and its up-and-coming community and education center located at 5464 S State Route 49, Greenville. There will be a video highlighting the past 15 years, pictures from the staffs’ out-of-state deployments; and information highlighting the EMS and community education program along with information on employment opportunities. There will also be door prizes and giveaways.

Hathaway said holding the 15-year celebration to kick off the 47th annual National EMS week, whose theme this year is “EMS Week: Rising to the Challenge,” only seemed fitting for recent times.

“Since Spirit’s inception, our employees have continued to rise to various challenges, all for the good of the patients, hospitals, facilities, schools and agencies we serve,” Hathaway said. “Our dedicated staff certainly have gone above and beyond especially over the past few years during the pandemic, and we stand forever proud of them. There’s no better feeling than knowing the thousands of lives our staff has touched over the past 15 years. We encourage everyone to come share their stories and celebrate with us at this community celebration.”

Hathaway shared immediately following the Taiko performance, company owners will be sharing a brief history about the past 15 years and recognizing all its current and potential future employees with a special presentation.

“We have worked to continue the motto we set 15 years ago of “Our Family Taking Care of Your Family,” said Guthrie, noting Spirit made its first ambulance run on Feb. 16, 2007. “We encourage everyone to come out and join in our celebration. Our team has been working hard over the past several months to plan this community celebration as we commemorate 15 years of dedicated service.”

Starting out initially with a fleet of five vehicles and eight employees, Spirit now serves with nearly 100 employees and over 50 vehicles from its six locations including Celina, Greenville, Houston, Sidney, and Van Wert, in Ohio as well as Liberty, Indiana.