FEATURE STORY

Prince William First Responder HEROES

By Rena Malai and Erin Pittman

Actor Christoper Reeves — who originally played Superman — said that a hero is someone who, in spite of…doubt or not always knowing the answers, goes ahead and overcomes anyway. This has struck a chord of truth in the past year, as the pandemic turned life upside down. Local law enforcement and fire and rescue teams within the community have had to forge into the unknown realms of COVID-19, putting themselves and their families at higher-than-usual risk, while keeping up with unprecedented changes daily as the shutdown unfolded.

Prince William Living shines a light on our local first responders. They have taken their already heroic professions and added an even deeper dimension in the past year to their hard work and commitment to keeping the community safe.

Prince William Area Law Enforcement

Everything changed when the COVID-19 pandemic first hit, according to Prince William County Police Department Public Information Office Supervisor and First Sergeant Jonathan Perok.

“We — and everyone else — needed to change and reassess how we operated,” Perok said.

One of the first things he noted was to make sure first responders and the community stayed safe by ensuring plenty of personal protective equipment, like hand sanitizer and masks, was on hand.

“These are typically things we have in stock. We needed to ensure more abundance of these items and had to make sure we had the protective equipment that we needed in place,” Perok said.

Law enforcement typically risk their lives everyday as part of the job, and Perok said sometimes heroic acts can lie in those thoughtful nods that truly support the community, like bringing positivity to front line health care workers with supportive visits or celebrating a birthday pandemic style.

“Our officers really engage in efforts to support members of the community,” Perok said. “A parent gave us a call about their child’s birthday party that got cancelled because of the pandemic and asked if some (patrol) cars could maybe drive by with the sirens and lights on to celebrate his day.”

He says while these kinds of requests can’t always be accommodated, Prince William law enforcement really enjoy doing it when they can.

“Those moments offer us and the community a lot of joy, especially during such a challenging time,” Perok said. “We want the community and our front line health care workers to know, we stand with you. We’re here for you.”

Prince William County Police Department adapting to COVID and ready to serve. City of Manassas Police Department echoes the same sentiments.

“I’m not sure anyone was prepared for COVID to impact us the way it has for over a year. For Manassas City Police, our Community Policing philosophy was impacted immediately,” said Colonel Douglas W. Keen, Chief of Police for the City of Manassas. “Normally we use public events and meetings to engage and interact with our residents and businesses but that changed immediately. However we are used to changing on the go and that is what we did.”

Like Prince William, Manassas City started doing drive-by birthday and other celebrations for residents — especially the younger residents.

“To have police officers show up or drive by with lights and recognizing them went a long way — even though we couldn’t see the smiles due to masks, parents relayed how excited and happy we made them. It is always nice to receive those kind of remarks,” said Chief Keen.

He noted that operationally, it was a major adjustment getting used to virtual meetings and engagements and that officers have worked hard to not lose the personal touch they are used to providing.

“Our efforts were limited due to the unprecedented impact and restrictions of COVID-19. Nevertheless, through creativity, innovation, and determination, several safe and healthy ‘virtual’ engagement strategies were developed and implemented,” said Sgt. Gio Barahona, City of Manassas Police Department Public Information Officer.

The department successfully adapted their annual Shop with a Cop program at Christmas into a virtual event, as well as scaled down and live-streamed their National Night Out last fall. They have also partnered with local organizations to help distribute food resources on a weekly basis, and they have hosted virtual station tours, vehicle displays, community partner meetings and career day appearance for Manassas City Schools throughout the pandemic.

Photo courtesy Manassas Park Police Department

Manassas Park Police were still able to work with Santa to continue their Shop with a Cop program for Christmas.

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(continued from page 5) Like their neighboring departments, City of Manassas Park Police Department also shifted gears operationally and found themselves in new territory during the pandemic.

“We stopped ride-alongs, fingerprinting, and visiting schools and daycares,” said Captain Frank Winston of the City of Manassas Park Police Department.

However, one interesting thing that did come out of the pandemic for Manassas Park was an unofficial partnership with the MAP clinic and Manassas Park Recreation Center for a noappointment, walk-up vaccination clinic. Officers helped staff the event that resulted in 1,000 vaccines delivered on a firstcome, first-served basis. Events like these were in extremely high demand in March.

“We had to turn away 1,500 people," said Captain Winston.

From vaccination clinics to birthday parties, Prince William area officers have risen to the call during the pandemic — likely in countless ways that they never could have imagined. And each of these adjustments and “extras” hasn’t gone unnoticed. We thank you all for the exceptional heartfelt work you’ve done over the past year and continue to do every day.

Prince William Area Fire and Rescue

Like law enforcement heroes, Prince William County Fire and Rescue System first responders have certainly faced many challenges in light of COVID-19, particularly with work/life balance, says Erik McCoy, Battalion Chief of the Prince William County Fire and Rescue System.

But he adds it hasn’t in the least impaired the ability of first responders in the community to provide quality service.

“People have really stepped their game up. They have the stamina to keep doing the right thing and provide a high quality level of service,” McCoy said.

No one could have possibly predicted the pandemic, says City of Manassas Fire and Rescue Department System Fire and Rescue Chief William A. Garrett. As very visible leaders in the community, first responders embraced the challenges and set the example, displaying incredible levels of commitment and staying the course.

“In this profession, we’re expected to respond and operate at a high level of proficiency during the unthinkable,” Garrett said. “Our first responders have continued to maintain their energy, effort and focus to ensure that during this pandemic, our system of services has shown no drop whatsoever.”

The pandemic has posed challenges with community engagement, Garrett said, and he noted the creative approaches taken to maintain visibility. “As fire fighters, first responders and volunteers, we’re working hard behind the scenes on communicating our public education and fire safety messages,” Garrett said. “We have a relationship with the community that goes far beyond emergency services.”

And even though COVID-19 was so sudden and drastically changed everything, fire and rescue workers rose to the crisis beyond words, said James. S. Soaper, Fire Chief at City of Manassas Park Fire & Rescue.

“These men and women showed up every day, putting themselves and their families at risk every day, without thinking twice,” Soaper said. “They accepted the risk, embraced it and truly provided a very passionate approach.”

That holds true even when it comes to mowing a lawn to help out, according to McCoy. He recalls that during the pandemic last summer, units responded to an individual experiencing a lifethreatening medical emergency — in the midst of cutting grass with his wife.

“Once the individual was stabilized and transported to the hospital, the remaining members on the scene recognized what was happening,” he said. “They … grabbed (the) lawn equipment and finished the job for the family. This is just one example of how Fire and Rescue System members go above and beyond to serve the public.”

From sharing messages of fire safety with young and old to providing life-saving care when needed most, we see you and we thank you for your kindness, commitment and bravery.

Fire Fighters from OWL VFD show kids Fire Engines at Station 2 in Woodbridge.

Occoquan-Woodbridge-Lorton Volunteer Fire Department worked to bring Santa to children, via their annual parade.

Rena Malai is a contributing writer for Prince William Living. She can be reached at rmalai@princewilliamliving.com. Erin Pittman is Editor in Chief of Prince William Living and can be reached at epittman@princewilliamliving.com.

PRINCE WILLIAM AREA DISPATCH

When an emergency call for help comes in, dispatchers are the first chain of command in ensuring a caller gets the help they need as quickly as possible. It takes quick thinking and staying calm under pressure to handle each situation correctly.

According to Perok, dispatchers in Prince William prescreen each call to assess what COVID measures a first responder may need to put in place when arriving on the scene.

“It allows us to have more vigilance, more awareness and cut down on any unnecessary exposure or spread of COVID-19,” Perok said. “These dispatch call prescreens help tremendously in allowing us to know exactly what we need to do in preparation, to keep everyone as safe as possible.”

To the men and women who answer the calls day in and day out, providing calm support while dispatching the emergency services we need — thank you.

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