Air Medical Team Reunites with Former Patients, Reflecting on Thousands of Lives Impacted  

HAGERSTOWN, MD – Oct. 22, 2024 – LifeNet 8-1, a trusted emergency air medical provider serving South Central Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Maryland, celebrated 15 years of service with a special event on Sunday, Oct. 20. The event, held at their base located at Hagerstown Regional Airport, brought together two former LifeNet patients and their families, community members, partners, and current and past crew members.

Washington County Commissioners John Barr and Randall Wagner joined the event to present a plaque recognizing LifeNet 8-1 as a critical asset to the community, transporting more than 7,500 patients in the past decade and a half.

One of those patients was Joel Brindle. On April 2, 2015, while checking his mail at the end of his driveway on a two-lane road in Greencastle, PA, Brindle was struck by a vehicle and thrown more than 100 ft from impact. Suffering chest trauma and a massive hemorrhaging of blood, the LifeNet team provided critical, prehospital care transporting Brindle to Meritus Medical Center where a trauma surgeon was on call and assisted in furthering his lifesaving care.

“We are grateful every day for the LifeNet team. Their quick decisions and fast actions made the difference in saving Joel’s life,” said Brindle’s wife Alicia Brindle. “No doubt, we are thriving today because of the care they provided. We’re forever thankful for this lifesaving team and very glad to be celebrating their anniversary.”

Flight Nurse Reuben Layton and former Flight Paramedic, now Account Executive, Ron Brown, both have been with LifeNet 8-1 since the base’s inception, responded to the scene that day and provided lifesaving care to Brindle.

“Your life is our mission,” said Layton. “Providing more tomorrows and helping people on their worst day is the noblest endeavor one can achieve.”

Also attending the anniversary celebration was former pediatric patient Sammy Schultz and his family. In the fall of 2018, at just two months old, Schultz was transported by the LifeNet team for cardiac and respiratory care. 

“Three flight clinicians responded, one was a trainee. The trainee was so gracious to stay behind so that I could travel with my son to the hospital,” said Sammy’s mother Christina Schultz. “My husband, Daren, and I were so grateful for this. In the chaos and fear after Sammy coded, it was a huge comfort to travel with him in the helicopter to a hospital that was hours away had we drove. We will always value this team as our family for caring for my son like they did.”

The LifeNet team provides support to first responders and hospitals, offering the community critical care 24/7/365 and responding to emergency medical and trauma events including heart attacks and strokes, burns, and other critical ailments and incidents—serving as a flying intensive care unit. They also carry whole blood on board and can administer it at the scene or in flight, further increasing positive patient outcomes.

We have a long-standing connection with LifeNet 8-1,” said Director of Franklin County Emergency Services Mary K. Seville. “Our partnership has been successful because of the great people who truly care about the citizens and first responders.  We look forward to working with LifeNet for another 15 years.”

LifeNet, a subsidiary of Air Methods, the nation’s leading air medical service, provides expert care through a flight team consisting of a pilot, nurse, and paramedic. The team receives ongoing advanced specialty training, including Level D Full Flight Simulators for pilots and state-of-the-art critical care training for clinicians through Air Methods Ascend. Certified by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems (CAMTS)—the highest standards in safety, clinical practice, quality assurance, and training in the industry—LifeNet provides hospital-level care during air medical transport, whether from the scene or between medical facilities.

View photos from the anniversary event here.