Two Riverdale St John ambulance members received milestone awards for their service to the organisation earlier this month.
St John Riversdale station manager Dave Hurley and first responder Debbie Schriek were recognised for 25 years of service to St John.
Helping people was what kept her in the job for so long, Mrs Schriek said.
‘‘I just love going out there and helping people when they are not well or if there’s been an accident,’’ she said.
For years, Riversdale St John did not have an ambulance and instead used a Volkswagen van.
‘‘We still have a stretcher in the van, but the ambulance is much better.’’
It was fair to say a lot had changed over 25 years, she said.
Training was one of the biggest changes.
‘‘It’s really good for us to be able to go out there and do our job as it changes.’’
Mr Hurley was humbled to receive the award.
‘‘It’s an award that not many people get and it’s a great achievement,’’ Mr Hurley said.
Before he became the station manger he was a first responder for 12 years.
Helping the community was one of the reasons he had stayed in the job, he said.
‘‘Someone may be in need of help and it is good that the crew can go out to help.’’
The amount of paperwork required for the job had been a big change over the 25 years.
‘‘That’s just the nature of any job, they’ve got so different in those years.’’
At 71 years old, Mr Hurley would continue to work for St John but planned to retire at some point.
Mrs Schriek had no intention to retire from the job at the moment.
Hokonui St John area committee chairman Martin Mackereth said their dedication to the job had been honourable.
‘‘They’re people that you know you can rely on,’’ Mr Mackereth said.
‘‘They give you that instant comfort when they are with you.’’
Mr Mackereth was the master of ceremonies for the awards and had worked with the pair for many years.
