Saving Lives In Whitestone

At about 6 p.m. on September 8, 1979, 11-year-old Joshua Brown passed out and stopped breathing. The boy had taken a medication prescribed for a virus, but something went terribly wrong.
Arthur and Victoria Brown, ran for the telephone in a race against time as their only child began slipping away. They dialed the number for the Whitestone Community Volunteer Ambulance Service. A voice answered, and help was on the way.
"They saved his life, no question," said Mr. Brown. "Ill always be grateful to them until the day I die." Though Joshua was in a coma for a week, he awoke with his faculties intact in large part because of the speed and skill of ambulance volunteers Joseph Papillo and Michael Kossove, both Whitestone residents.
As their son grew up, the Browns never forgot the help they received from Mr. Papillo and Mr. Kossove that terrible day, and recently, each man received an invitation to Joshuas wedding.
"They took us from table to table and introduced us as the guys who made this wedding possible," Mr. Kossove recalled. "You can never leave an organization after you do a call like that." Both he and Mr. Papillo are still with the ambulance corps more than 20 years later.
For more than 55 years, the Whitestone ambulance service has rushed to the aid of local residents in need. According to Mr. Papillo, the corps roughly 65 volunteers go out on 700 to 800 calls a year. Almost all the calls are made directly to the corps office, rather than through the citys 911 service, testimony to its vital place in the fabric of the community.
"We are a free service," said Corps Manager Anthony Rambazis. "We charge nothing, not even a penny for our service." He added that the corps also provides free crutches and walkers to elderly and injured people in the neighborhood. They also run a blood drive every year.
However, in spite of strong community support and a large number of committed volunteers, the corps sometimes has to tell callers they are unavailable.
"The biggest problem is we need more volunteers," said Mr. Papillo. "People will call and we dont have a crew, so we refer them to 911. Its very frustrating when theres a need and we cant respond."
With a record of excellence and multiple gold medals at state competitions, the corps provides rigorous training and strong guidance for new recruits. Over the years, veteran members have molded plumbers, electricians, professors and court clerks into lifesavers. The organization even offers a training program for high school students, in which the young people go out on calls and observe adult volunteers in action. Once the teenagers turn 18, they are eligible to join.
Of four volunteers relaxing at the ambulance corps headquarters on 150th Street and 12th Avenue, all said they gained as much from volunteering as those they help.
Corps President Eugene Fischer has been with the corps for 27 years. The science teacher at IS 5 in Elmhurst said he decided to become a volunteer after meeting members of the Whitestone corps when the civilian police patrol he was involved in was called to the scene of a deadly car accident. "The Whitestone volunteers got in there and initiated first aid," he recalled. "The members of my patrol were so impressed about a half dozen of us joined up."
For Mel Harris, a new volunteer, the reasons for joining are intangible, but very real. "You get that feeling," he said. "Just to help people, its worth it. A lot of people need help."
To learn more about joining the Whitestone Community Volunteer Ambulance Service, call (718) 767-1000.