Gov. Tony Evers Announces New EMS Funds During Peshtigo Visit

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, along with Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) Secretary Karen Timberlake and a number of staff members, visited Peshtigo on Tuesday, Aug. 2 to view improvements that will be made with the $3 million Neighborhood Investment Fund  grant the city has been awarded to expand parts of the Municipal Building, including mainly the fire station and the library, and enable the fire department to also become an accredited Emergency Medical Services (EMS) provider.
 
The $3 million grant to Peshtigo is financed by American Rescue Plan dollars and was added after the initial grants were announced. Other grants announced at the time went to the City of Oconto Falls, which was awarded $7 million for fire station expansion, and the City of DePere, which was awarded $206,831 for a mobile EMS unit.
 
While in Peshtigo, Gov. Evers and Timberlake announced an additional $8 million in grant funds that is now being made available to EMS providers across the state, in addition to the previously announced $12 million for one-time flexible grants for small, under-resourced EMS providers who did not otherwise qualify for specific existing state grants.
 
The governor and his entourage were greeted by city officials when they arrived at the Peshtigo Municipal Building at 10 a.m. They were given a tour of the Municipal Building, starting with the library, where Marinette County Library Director Karin Adams and Jenny Hipke of the Peshtigo Library Board of Directors explained plans to expand that facility with a 20-foot addition along the length of the north wall to provide space for computer use with COVID-friendly distancing. Adams said the library has five computers and access to more if needed when the space is available.
 
In the Fire Station Mayor Cathi Malke and Fire Chief Charles Gardon explained expansion plans. Malke pointed out the close quarters, and commented that the facility is so crowded that firefighters sit on the back of their trucks during meeting sessions. There would be no room to add EMS equipment. Malke said the project is moving forward quickly and the  city is almost ready to go out for bids. “We would never be able to do this without this grant,” Malke told the governor.
 
Lined up in the Municipal building parking lot were various fire trucks, including one from the City of DePere Fire and Rescue, which had also benefitted from one of the most recent grants. City of DePere Fire Chief Alan Matzke was among the small crowd that gathered for the official portion of the ceremonies in Peshtigo.
 
Mayor Malke welcomed Gov. Evers; Secretary Timberlake; Chief Gardon; Greg Loll, chair of the Emergency Rescue Squad, and Mike Orlando, manager of Aurora Bay Area Medical Center Ambulance Department and others who were on hand.
 
Malke, who personally is an active Rescue Squad member, noted that shortage of EMS workers all across the state has become a top concern for all communities. “When the Neighborhood Funding Program opportunity was released our Fire Department was already assisting EMS when requested,”she said, and added they are now stepping forward, and are willing to become First Responders when the call for help comes in. “I can’t say enough about our firemen,” Malke added. “They leave their families to protect the lives and property of our city.”
 
Malke said the funding the city will receive “...will be the difference between life and death for our residents. without this funding the city would not have been able to accomplish this program...”
Emergency medical response services for calls in the City of Peshtigo are currently provided by Emergency Rescue of Marinette.
Malke repeated her thanks to Gov. Evers for having the foresight to offer the grant program, and as a small token and remembrance from the City of Peshtigo presented him with coins from the city’s 150th celebration of the City Reborn from Ashes after the Peshtigo Fire of 1871.
 
“Every Wisconsinite should have access to health care, whenever and wherever it is needed,” Gov. Evers declared when he stepped to the podium set up in the parking lot at the Municipal building.
He said at the state level they are trying to break barriers to health care faced especially by small communities, and one way to do that is Tele-health. He said last week they gave a $2.5 million grant to set up a program where people can meet over the telephone with a mental health professional, and added this is one ay to deal with Covid problems, especially in rural communities.
 
Gov. Evers said volunteers and paid staff of emergency rescue services due to an outstanding job for public safety, but costs in that area have risen over 16 per cent in recent years, while funding has dropped by nine percent, and some areas were left without ambulance services and had to depend on neighboring providers. He said during his next term he plans to provide $30 million more to emergency medical responders, public and private, and Marinette County EMS units will be eligible to receive five times more than they would have received under previous programs.
 
“No one should have to call an ambulance and then wait and wonder when they will arrive,” Gov. Evers declared.
He closed his comments with thanks to all the firefighters and EMS responders, “...for all you do for a safer and healthier Wisconsin.”
 
Chief Gardon also welcomed Gov. Evers and Secretary Timberlake, and expressed appreciation for the grant that will allow his department to expand its services.
 
“The grant money from the Neighborhood Investment Fund Grant program is as important to the fire departments of small cities like Peshtigo as well as the largest cities in the state,” he said. “These monies will allow the fire department to have appropriate facilities for EMS services from which to serve the residents of Peshtigo and surrounding areas. this grant will truly make a difference to the people of Peshtigo.’
 
Gardon concluded with an expression of appreciation to Malke for her dedication and unwavering commitment to overcome challenges in the program application process. “It was through her commitment to the people of Peshtigo that the Peshtigo Fire Department and its citizens will benefit from the Neighborhood Investment fund program for years to come.”
 
Orlando, on behalf of the Aurora Bay Area Paramedics, thanked Gov. Evers and the entire state of Wisconsin for placing this investment with this area. “It is not easy to get volunteers today, and our county is almost entirely served by volunteers,” Orlando said. He said lots of projects have been on hold, and the new grants will allow us to proceed, he said. He added that funding like this supplements EMS and supports the entire community.
 
Greg Loll, on behalf of Emergency Rescue Squad, which is one of the all-volunteer EMS providers in Marinette County, declared their organization is entirely staffed by volunteers and totally funded by fund raising projects and donations from the public. He thanked the governor and secretary of health for the announcement of increased funding, and expressed thanks. He challenged “young people to step up and volunteer.”
 
“One of the governor’s core principles is that we should all be connecting the dots,” Secretary Timberlake declared, and added, “This is a perfect opportunity to do that...a way to be sure people all across the state have access to emergency medical services.”
 
She said the total of $10 million in new funding will help make sure that EMTs have the training they need to do their jobs, and the equipment to do it with.
“I am a small town kid, and I understand how important it is for small town cities to have the same services as larger cities,” Gov. Evers said. “We believe strongly that in the next budget we will have the funds we need to continue this good work.
 
The governor and his staff left City Hall to tour the Fire Museum before returning to the airport in Menominee and the flight to their next stop of the day, which was to be in Westby, where the Westby First Responders had been awarded  $15,000 Healthcare Infrastructure grant to purchase a Lund University Cardiac Assist System (LUCAS) device.
 

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