Home Town Heroes Cynthia Herrin

I’m married to Jennifer. Between both of us we have What made you want to serve the city of Heber

I grew up in Anchorage, Alaska and in Cabot, where I graduated high school. One of my friends came home on leave from bootcamp and soon after that I joined the Marine Corps. Once I got out, I moved back here and everything just fell in to place with the police department. I did a lot of ride alongs with BC, one of the cops in Heber, who I’ve known for a long time. And it all

What do you find most rewarding about being a police

I don’t like bullies and I don’t like people who take advantage of other people. I like finding the person who’s responsible for taking advantage of innocent people. Sometimes people can be pretty evil to each other and sometimes we can be really humble. This job has made me a lot more humble over the years. In the end, I just really like to help people that are in need. Someone has to do it. So it may as well be someone who

What advice would you give to someone who wants to

I’m have been married for 26 years to Shannon Phelps. She is a nursing instructor with Baptist Health College. We have two grown kids. Brandon, a paramedic in Jonesboro, and Olivia, who is starting her journey into college. I have lived in Heber Springs since high school. My grandfather was originally from the area,

My wife knew from an early age in her childhood that she was going to be a nurse. I however had no clue. My parents owned a towing & recovery business in Memphis so I saw tragedy in automobile accidents at a young age. I guess between my wife and her desire to help others and my exposure to accident scenes, I decided to give this a try. And 22 years later, I’m still

They can’t be shared in this article, however I will say I am a huge fan of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (It’s tradition at my house to watch it every

What do you find most challenging about being a

I would say that my biggest challenge, at HSFD or in leadership in general, is to make sure I am leading in a way that will guide others. I have always struggled with this, always asking myself, did I do everything I could.

I think having prior responsibility and experience… like the military or something similar. The military takes young men and puts them in very adult situations and that’s similar to this job. You’re put out here to make split second decisions and it’s not always easy. Be here because you want to be not because you have to. That would be the best advice I could give to someone.

In Fire & EMS, you don’t have time to ponder answers, you have to make quick decisions and act on them. Several months ago, my son, Brandon (the paramedic), responded to a very serious call, he handled it by the book, all went extremely well. He called Shannon later and told her about it and said that the leadership that I taught him growing up is why he does what he does and how he handles every situation. As a husband, a father, a leader in our Church, a Captain on the HSFD, or a supervisor in my career, leadership and integrity are essential in every situation life throws our way.

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