Three Stawell Ambulance Victoria officers have been recognised for a combined 100 years of service as paramedics.
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Ian Jones reached his 40th year as a paramedic in 2016, while Ron Lazones and Shane Edwards both hit the 30-year mark, making the Stawell team one of the most experienced in the state.
Mr Edwards started as a paramedic when he was 29.
His inspiration for the late career change came after he saw his mother become ill and receive help from paramedics.
He joined moved to Stawell in 2013 for a lifestyle change.
Before that he spent time in positions at Yarra Junctions and South Gippsland.
Mr Edwards said he had been one of the older trainees when he was at learning at school.
”I had always been interested in it then my mum became very ill,” he said.
“I saw them look after my mum, and I thought maybe I could have a crack at this.”
He has delivered 22 babies during his time as a paramedic, including two sets of twins, one of which was delivered on Mother’s Day 16 years ago.
Mr Edwards said being a paramedics had offered him the chance to make a difference to people’s lives.
”The training I have got has taken me to the Philippines as a volunteer and I went Aceh in Indonesia after the tsunami,” he said.
“The thing that keeps you coming back is that every day is something different.
“The ability to help people, who you see at their worst, but the chance to make a difference in their lives.”
Mr Lazones said he decided to become a paramedic when he was just five years old.
When he left school he was too young to join, so he became a Royal Melbourne Hospital orderly, until he turned 23.
Mr Lazones said he spend 27 years at the Waverly branch before moving to Stawell to be closer to his step-daughter at Nhill.
”Stawell is nowhere near as busy as Melbourne,” he said.
“It is challenging in a different way though, we don’t have the volume of work we did in Melbourne, but we have sicker patients.
“Because of car accidents, the distances involved and for traumatic injuries we don’t have the major hospital Melbourne has or a mobile intensive care unit as backup.”
As the longest serving member of the three Mr Jones joined the service as one of nine cadets after finishing year 11 in 1976.
He started the cadetship in Geelong before moving to Werribee.
Mr Jones the spent 11 years working as an Ambulance officer in Melbourne, before four years in Queensland, then finally settling in Stawell for the past 19 years.
