Rutherford County First Responders Spread Cheer During the Holiday Season

Rutherford County First Responders have organized and participated in several charitable initiatives during the month of December. 

Rutherford County Emergency Medical Service conducted a food drive and participated in an event at The Experience Church with 1,500 kids. 

The food drive raised over $8,000, which allowed them to stock up on essential food items. The donations along with the food items collected from both the staff and the community were delivered to the Rutherford County Schools ATLAS Program, an initiative that supports students facing food scarcity and those who rely heavily on the school system for their daily meals.

Rutherford County Emergency Management Agency 911 staff collected donations and food for the Rutherford County Schools ATLAS Program as well.  The dispatchers collected money and donated items to Rutherford County PAWS, contributed to several GoFundMe fundraisers for coworkers and strangers and bought Angel Tree gifts.  They also collected money and items to make Christmas gift bags for local nursing home residents.  A video about the gift bag initiative is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rniplYevNrQ.

Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office Secret Santa and Mrs. Claus spread joy through deputies.

Secret Santa and Mrs. Claus share their work successes by giving Rutherford County Sheriff’s patrol deputies cash to give to residents before the Christmas holidays.

Their secret donations generously make Christmas a little merrier for the recipients deputies encountered through their work.

Sgt. Robert Horne said day shift deputies pooled their cash to support three families who experienced medical and financial hardships.

Deputy Christopher Mager delivered a donation to 12-year-old Remy Peterson the day she returned home from Vanderbilt Medical Center after a medical emergency.

Deputy Natalie Woodward and Field Training Officer Gabriel Commodore delivered funds to Caitlin Daly. Her husband is deployed with the Tennessee National Guard. They have four children, Wilder, Walker, Aria, and Wade.

Deputy Charles Fann delivered the third donation to Antonio and Ashley Sanchez whose 2-year-old son, Maverick, is being treated for leukemia at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.

Midnight shift Sgt. Scott Parker said he was at Walmart on Rutherford Boulevard when he noticed Jaqueline Salazar and her daughter, Aubrielle, 12, of Murfreesboro.

 “The daughter had a piece of paper she was unfolding and it had a long list with a bunch of numbers on it like they were budgeting for something,” Parker said. “I approached her and just had a conversation with her. I found out she just moved here from out of state and money was tight.”

Parker gave the mother the envelope with money and took a photo of them. When she looked in the envelope, she asked if she could hug him.

 “I turned around, gave her a hug and told her to have a blessed night and a wonderful Christmas,” Parker said.

Deputy Michael Bennett noticed a family with an older son and a baby. He decided to present son Kingston Brazier, 11, with Secret Santa’s stash.

“Honestly, he looked like a good kid,” Bennett said.

The deputies thank Secret Santa and Mrs. Claus for sharing their gifts.