Honored as a Woman of Distinction was Amy Thomas, a dedicated 26-year volunteer with South Country Ambulance, having joined in 1998 when she was just 18. She has since proven to be a devoted volunteer who gives her time freely and works to constantly advance her EMS education and career while serving her community. Amy has been a New York State EMT-B for 21 years while climbing through the ranks to become the department’s chief of administration, a position she has held since 2010. This title makes her the third in command of the busiest EMS agency in the Town of Brookhaven and the seventh busiest EMS agency in Suffolk County.
This is no small responsibility as the South Country Ambulance District is 24 square miles with 18 miles of waterways. Within the command's boundaries are the Suffolk County police headquarters, county jail, county fire training grounds, Southaven County Park, a federal wildlife refuge, all South Country school district buildings, Brookhaven Memorial Hospital, large industrial sites, and more than 6,000 residential homes.
Over the years, Amy has taken a proactive response to community education by coordinating CPR and first-aid training for many groups and going into school districts to train children on bike safety and other child-specific topics. Over 3,000 children and 500 adults have been taught in the past few years. Amy has also continued her own EMS education. She has become certified or taken additional training in drowning emergencies, prehospital trauma life support, pediatric education, and advanced national incident management classes.
Amy oversees the department’s Continuing Medical Education program, which ensures that department EMTs and paramedics are credentialed by the State of New York. In addition to her EMS responsibilities, Amy is a volunteer coach with Bellport Soccer and serves on the board of directors for two local non-profits. During her tenure, Amy has given more than 20,000 volunteer hours to the community she grew up in and resides with her husband, Neil, and their three children, Hunter, Lochlyn, and Eastlyn.