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Berrien County honors dispatchers, first responders and two citizens for July rescue
Summary
At a Berrien County Board of Commissioners meeting, officials presented life‑saving awards to 9‑1‑1 dispatcher Cassie Pointer, first responders and two citizens whose CPR helped a man survive electrocution on July 10.
The Berrien County Board of Commissioners presented life‑saving awards to 9‑1‑1 dispatcher Cassie Pointer, emergency responders and two citizens on the record after a July 10 incident in which a man, identified only as Lincoln in the meeting, was electrocuted and went into cardiac arrest.
Caitlin Samsel introduced the recognition, saying the awards honor the dispatch supervisor, field responders and citizens who worked together to save a life. Samsel singled out Pointer for using the emergency medical dispatch protocol to recognize agonal breathing and to direct callers to perform CPR until medics arrived. Samsel asked the board to recognize Great Lakes Medical first responder Matthew Quinn, Medic 1 EMT Mindy Reeves and citizens Nate Tetreault and Tyler Boehm.
The board and meeting attendees applauded the recipients. Lincoln, who survived and attended the meeting, addressed the board and those who assisted him. “I’m just so grateful to all of you,” he said. He identified Tetreault and Boehm as “my angels” and said the experience gave him “a new lease on life.”
Samsel, a presenter at the meeting, described the event as an uncommon but welcome outcome for dispatch staff, noting that 9‑1‑1 personnel do not often learn the final outcomes of calls. She thanked dispatch staff, Medic 1 crews and partner agencies for their response. The presenter also acknowledged Michigan State Police and the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office for responding to the priority call.
The board paused briefly to permit photographs and to allow the honorees and their families to leave if needed. The commission chair and other commissioners praised the actions of the citizens and responders.
The recognition was presented during the communications portion of the meeting; no formal board action was required or taken to confer the awards during the public record portion.
Ending: The presentation concluded with thanks from the board and a request that attendees remain if they wished. No follow-up motions or formal votes were recorded in the transcript regarding the awards.
