by California Casualty | Nominate a Hero |
“We Protect American Heroes.”
When I first started at California Casualty more than two years ago, this was our new company tagline. Wrapped up in a nice shiny package by an advertising agency, it looked great sitting there under our logo. Every other insurance company had their snazzy marketing hook – the hands, neighbors, and funny reptiles talking about savings—and I figured this was ours. New to this company and our customers, I thought this was just another catchy slogan.
But then I started interacting with our customers on Facebook and Twitter… and everything changed.
I started to hear the stories. Stories about struggling teachers who were paying for resources out of their own pockets because they just couldn’t stomach sacrificing quality education for budget cuts. Stories from nurses worked to the brink of exhaustion who continued to give patients the best care they could. Stories of firefighters who–even while mourning the loss of a brother–continued to follow their fellow firefighters into burning buildings. Stories of peace officers who laid their lives on the line to protect someone they had never even met.
Then the light went on. We’re not just selling car insurance here. We’re playing a small role in making the lives of some very important people better. We’re working hard to take one small thing, one small worry, off their plates. We’re protecting their homes and cars so they can get back to protecting us. Right then, I made it one of my goals to develop a program to reward these Heroes for what they do. More importantly, I wanted to honor them.
That’s why we created the “Nominate a Hero” contest. We envision a platform for people to say “Thank you” to these Heroes we are so honored to serve. On top of that, we wanted to add a chance for one Hero to win a once-in-a-lifetime trip, as a small token of our thanks.
I was a little worried starting out. How could I convince management to pay for this? I admit that I underestimated just how deeply the family culture runs at California Casualty. From the very beginning, every person I shared my vision with was thrilled to have the opportunity to thank our Heroes. Their enthusiasm is truly a testament to the honor and gratitude we derive from serving our customers.
Thank you for everything you do to make our communities better. Please take a moment to check out our contest, and enter as many deserving people as you can think of.
Sincerely,
Scott Randolph
Social Media Manager, California Casualty
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To learn more about Nominate a Hero, or nominate your own hero, click here.
by California Casualty | Firefighters |
It was weird watching Hurricane Sandy through my front window rather than through the windshield of Rescue 5. It seems as though every major storm that passed through New England over the last twenty some odd years waited for me to start my tour. Sad truth is, I liked that just fine. It’s easy being alone during bad weather, even if the job you are doing is hard. This time, things were different; I had to ride it out at home.
Being home and helpless is difficult. As the winds picked up velocity and the branches of the trees, and the trees themselves shook, and shattered and fell to the ground I could do nothing but watch. My window was as close to the action as I would get, and I was not all that crazy about standing too close to that window! I found it difficult to sit still and watch things go flying by, but there was nothing I could do to change what was happening.
Nature’s fury is a little less intimidating thanks to advances in technology. By pressing a button we are able to track a storm, know when it’s coming, when it’s going, how much rain to expect, how strong the winds will be, and a whole bunch of other information like barometric pressure and things like that that mean absolutely nothing to me. What did matter was the fact that I knew that this too would pass, and the lights will come on, and hopefully stay on, and life will return to normal. This confidence in our ability to weather a storm is a luxury only afforded the most recent generation, prior to us people hunkered down when the wind blew, hopeful it would end, but not knowing if things would get worse before they got better.
Maybe things were better that way, and some fear was instilled in humanity. Humility and appreciation seem much more appetizing when not sure if at the next moment everything could end, or be forever changed. Alas, humility has never been my strength, and as I watched the chaos outside of my window I knew it would all be over soon. The TV told me so.
I’ve often said that it’s our families that deserve the credit when we are out doing our thing, but I never really believed it. I thought I believed it, and if questioned would vociferously defend that statement, but as the windows shook, and more branches fell, and another tree succumbed to the eighty mile an hour gusts, and my heart pounded a little harder than I thought possible, and I contemplated calling 911 to report trees in the wires, I realized just how much I had taken the family I left behind for granted. I was nervous, and worried, and it was not a feeling that I’m used to. My family was used to it, having been left alone during emergencies for years.
I enjoy nothing more that being called to action, and braving the elements while responding to some emergency or other. It’s an adrenaline rush like no other, fighting natures wrath on the way to save some poor soul from whatever predicament they find themselves in. Even the most wildly lived lives consist mostly of boring routine, and the chance to challenge the elements and make a difference and break the monotony is one I live for. Losing myself in an emergency is easy, and life affirming, and an enormous ego boost.
It’s a wonder I can even fit my head through the doorway of our home, where I weathered this storm, miserable, knowing that I was missing all of the fun.
And my wife stood by, busy with her routine, comfortable in her place, batteries ready, candles where they needed to be, dinner for days prepared, ice in the cooler, crossword puzzle books and some games next to the battery operated radio.
She was prepared. I was not. Somewhere in my thick skull the notion that I was above commoners in terms of severe weather readiness resided. Let the hurricanes, blizzards, heat waves, tornadoes and earthquakes come; I am ready, willing and able to respond to those emergencies! But prepare for them? Not even close. Preparation is dull, part of that 90% monotony called life. Preparation for things that “might” happen is far different than responding to things that “did” happen.
In my arrogance I failed to allow myself to live a moment in my families shoes. It is frightening enough to be at the mercy of the elements, hoping that the walls keep the weather out, and the basement stays dry, and the roof remains in place. Hunkering down during a storm is highly underrated. It takes more courage than I ever imagined, and I cannot begin to imagine one of us being out during the worst of it. I honestly don’t think I have what it takes to keep the home together, and stocked, and prepared. Sure, I can put beer in the fridge, and get cans of tuna and a manual opener, but can I keep my emotions in check when the house is shaking and the person I love is not there?
Being prepared is harder than responding. True strength of character is necessary, as well as leadership, courage, and faith. Anybody can take care of things after they happen, waiting for and being ready for anything that might happen, and doing so when you are terrified and your other half is gone takes a special person.
Storms will come, and storms will go, and each one is different in its intensity and potential for inflicting damage. Hurricane Sandy was a doozy, blazing a path of death and destruction through the eastern states. Truly heroic acts were performed by our first responders, and I watched the events over and over on my TV, proud to be part of that world, all the while humbled and awed by the heroes under my own roof.
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Captain Michael Morse is a Rescue Captain in the Providence Fire Department’s rescue unit and author of two books: “Rescuing Providence” and “Responding.” His blog was voted the winner of the 2012 CalCas Battle of the Blogs ‘Top Firefighter & EMT Blog.’ Cpt. Morses’s books & blog are great resources for EMTs and Firefighters- full of advice, news briefs, and day-to-day insider stories. To learn more about Captain Morse, check out our interview with him!
by California Casualty | Firefighters |
With 58 injured survivors and 12 fatalities, the Paramedics who responded to the Aurora theatre on July 20, 2012 were dealt a chaotic scene. The professional job in front of them was immense, to say nothing of how they must have been feeling on a personal level.
(Photo: Karl Gehring/The Denver Post )
To get some perspective on what an event such as this is like for a Paramedic, I headed to our Top Fire & EMT Blog: Rescuing Providence. Rescuing Providence is run by Captain Morse, is a Rescue Captain in Providence.
On his site site, Captain Morse has posted his thoughts and responses to Aurora, speaking as an EMT. I’ve included a few particularly poignant excerpts here, but head to Rescuing Providence to read the text in full.
When sorting through the bodies, and separating the living from the dead, then prioritizing those who survived, and those who probably will not, focus is key. Having a job to do, one that years of training and experience has prepared you for makes the images and sounds manageable, work to be done, wounds to heal, lives to save.
Moments such as those in Aurora, Colorado will never happened to the vast majority of people. These are isolated incidents, pockets of madness that crept up on some other people. But those people do exist, and they are no different from you or I, had no warning, have no answers and will live the rest of their lives flashing back to those pivotal moments.
Now that the shooting is over, and the healing begins, people will look to the police, medics, nurses, doctors and firefighters who responded to the scene for direction. How we act, and how we cope, and how we get on with our lives is of vital importance to those poor souls drowning in an ocean of grief.
There is always more work to do.
To read Captain Morse’s post in full, click here.
Our sincere Thanks to Captain Morse for allowing us to reproduce parts of his post in this blog posting.
by California Casualty | Nurses |
Transporting the injured from the scene in Aurora was just the first step.
From there, they were received by the caring arms of the Nurses and medical staff in various Denver hospitals.
That early morning, survivors began the long and hard journey towards recovery.
And standing beside them are Nurses. Nurses who see first-hand the physical pain of survivors and the emotional pain of survivors, their families and their friends.
Nurses, too, must process their own grief as they struggle to understand this tragedy and support those whose survival is now in their hands.
Eric Young, Jr., a second baseman and outfielder for the Colorado Rockies who recently visited survivors in the hospital, said it best:
To hear more about tragic events such as Aurora from a Nursing perspective, I headed to Nurse Keith Carlson’s Nursing blog Digital Doorway.
Nurse Keith has written a beautiful post entitled “Of Tragedy, Heroism and Recovery.” While you’ll have to click on the link to see all of his thoughts and reflections, I thought I’d highlight some of his strongest statements here.
When events like this occur in our midst, we frequently do not consider the impact that it has on the first responders who initially respond to such traumatic events, as well as the hospital staff, surgeons and nurses who deal with the (often prolonged and painful) aftermath.
Since I’m a nurse who coaches and advises nurses on self care, burnout prevention and overall health and wellness, I’d like to take a moment to consider how nurses and their healthcare colleagues themselves react to such traumatic events, especially when standing on the front lines.
In the case of the Aurora massacre, one can only imagine what might be going through the minds of the nurses and other staff members of the hospitals on the receiving end of the racing ambulances. Were their friends and neighbors among the dead or injured? Would a colleague be one of the critical patients rushed from the scene in need of life-saving assistance? How would it feel to see a favorite teacher or local barista bloodied and fighting for her life as the sirens announced their arrival through the emergency department doors?
The ripple of trauma is wide in a scenario such as Aurora, and we hope that the paramedics, nurses, surgeons and others who treated—and are still treating—the injured are taking care of themselves even as they care for those in need of their professional skills and expertise.
Those frontline medical personnel need to remember to hydrate well, eat nutritious food, take time for self care, practice good sleep hygiene, and spend time away from work where the stresses of this traumatic event can be briefly set aside. For those who are prone to give until it hurts—and then give some more—it’s a high priority to get away, debrief with friends, family and colleagues, and allow the nervous system to recalibrate.
My sincere thanks to Nurse Keith for allowing me to discuss his tips and insights in this blog post.
by California Casualty | Peace Officers |
Here at California Casualty, we pride ourselves in knowing and understanding the professions that we work with.
But we also recognize, there is only so much we can know without being in the cop car, classroom, fire truck or hospital day in and day out. There’s only so much you can know without actually living it.
One of the highlights of this Battle of the Blogs–for me at least–has been the inside look that these blogs offer. With great writing and honest content, they are a chance to go inside the worlds of our professions- inside the cop car and into the fire.
And that’s really the stand-out feature of today’s blog.
Today’s TOP Law Enforcement Blog is…
Raindogblue.
The blog is authored by a real cop. And it talks about real things. Names and locations have been changed, but the content–the substance–is honest.
Best of all? The writing is spectacular. You can feel the real in the writing. Raindog will take you out there with him. But beware, it’s not always pretty.
As always, we wanted to know more about the man behind the blog. Here’s our Q&A with Raindog himself…
Raindog, how would you describe Raindogblue?
Raindogblue is a journal dedicated to Momentary Glimpses of Police Life. Be warned. This is the blog of street cop: brutal, injuring, disturbing. The stories are real. The jargon is used. Only the names of people and places have been changed to protect the fragile and innocent.
What is the focus or mission of your blog?
My blog is dedicated to describing the daily life of a patrolman.
What originally drove you to start blogging?
So that my family and friends would understand what I do and so my children, when they are adults, will know why their father was gone so many nights.
How long have you been writing on this particular blog?
I started Raindogblue on March 31st, 2008. This is my first blog.
Do you have any favorite or least favorite blogging topics?
I don’t write about favorite or least favorite topics. I write about the job. I write about stories from calls. I write about the language and jargon. I write about the bureaucracy. I write about the mundane and remarkable.
Tell us a little bit about your blog ‘community’ …
At the core, Raindogblue is read by my family and friends, but over the years I have picked up readers who are interested in first responders and the families that support them. My readership spans from every state in the US as well regulars from the UK, Norway, Canada, Germany, and Mexico. And finally, despite my attempt to be anonymous, about two years ago, my blog was discovered by co-workers who were web surfing. One of my stories went viral. Officers remembered the call and started reading the blog, including my partner, Grumpy. I have been told several officers want their stories told and given nicknames in the journal.
What about them surprises you or gives you inspiration?
I like the dark humor and camaraderie for those who ‘get’ the job. Mostly, I like comments. Raindogblue is a record for the readers as much as it is for me.
What have you learned from the experience?
1) Tell the truth. It is better than fiction.
2) Don’t use the names of people and place: change them. Anonymity strengthens the story and protects the people portrayed in the posts.
Any great/funny/inspiring stories you’d like to share?
Looking for Meat, Frank, A Break in the Routine and The Crash
If you win, to which charity will you donate your $200 winnings? Why?
The Sunshine Division. They feed the hungry and clothe children.
To check out Raindogblue, click here! To vote for your favorite Law Enforcement blog, click here!
