Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46By YM/GySgt Mariah French LCpl Caleb John Powers (VA) Mary French is a Senior Special Agent (SSA) with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Office of Law Enforcement, in Fredericksburg, VA. Prior to her current position, she was employed as a Wildlife Inspector with the USFWS at the Port of New York, NY and Boston, MA. She frequently seized wildlife imported into the United States in violation of various fish and wildlife laws and regulations, as well as United States customs laws and regulations. Prior to her beginning her career with the USFWS, she was a Security Police Dog Handler in the United States Air Force for four years.As an agent with the USFWS,she has been stationed in Sacra- mento, CA and Richmond and Arlington, VA. She has a Bachelor of Science de- gree in wildlife biology from the Univer- sity of Massachusetts and has received extensive training in areas related to federal wildlife investigations. French has conducted approximately 400 in- vestigations related to the violation of federal wildlife law and has organized and participated in the execution of ap- proximately 50 federal search warrants. She has been with the USFWS for more than 25 years and plans to retire in De- cember, 2016. A Senior Special Agent in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Almost a Half a Century of Community Service By YM/ MSgt Michael French LCpl Caleb John Powers (VA) To paraphrase President Ronald Rea- gan, some people go their entire lives wondering what they have done to make a difference in their community and in the world; Mrs. Debbie McGhee doesn’t have that problem. Debbie is a Life Member and the offi- cial Treasurer for Fredericksburg Rescue Squad in Fredericksburg, Virginia. What makes her story unique is her nearly fifty years of community volunteer ser- vice with various rescue organizations from Colonial Beach, VA to where she currently is now, in Fredericksburg. Debbie’s interest was sparked as a teen; her mother introduced her to emergency medicine in the late 1960s. At that time, it was more common to see women staying at home and doing household chores, taking care of chil- dren and preparing meals. “It was con- sidered un-cool for mothers to work un- less they needed to”, McGee says, “But, my mother was one of the only women volunteer rescuers in the entire state of Virginia”.Her mother volunteered at Co- lonial Beach Rescue Squad, and this is where Debbie began her career. At 15, she joined the Junior Squad and eventually moved to the Senior Squad. She served 5 to 6 years before moving to Fredericksburg, where in 1977 Mrs. McGhee started volunteering at the Fredericksburg Rescue Squad. Debbie raised a Marine, she is a blue star mom and her son is now a U.S.Mar- shal who, while in the military , earned a bronze star. Her father (a Navy veteran) and she worked for the Marine Corps as a ci- vilians for 37 years. She saw the world traveling with the Corps, eventually be- ing considered a “Civilian Marine”. Af- ter 36 years at Fredericksburg Rescue, Debbie talks most about the future of emergency medicine. She explains the importance of encour- aging young people coming into rescue organizations to take as many classes as they can and to have an open mind. She says that experience is important and it is even more important to share it with newcomers in the medical field. Originally McGhee was a Cardiac Tech, but that job does not exist anymore and was replaced by paramedics. Currently, along with being the FRS Treasurer and Life Member, Mrs. Mc- Ghee is the Infectious Disease Control Officer and keeps her certifications up to date. Mrs. McGhee’s career in emergency medicine began in 1960, at a time when “It was considered un-cool for mothers to work unless they needed to.” She conducted approximately 400 investigations related to the violation of federal wildlife law and organized and participated in the execution of approximately 50 federal search warrants. ESPRIT ONLINE | Page 35