News Sample

Publication=The_Leaf_Chronicle; Date=06/02/2006; Section=Front; Page=1; Id=2006060208420347;

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JOE SNOW DIED MAY 28 A COMMUNITY HERO

He saved numerous lives before sacrificing his own trying to rescue drowning teens. Even in death, his watch hasn’t ended.

‘Medic 249’ gave his life while watching over ours

Friends say paramedic died doing what he loved

By MELISSA TYNDALL

The Leaf-Chronicle

More than 150 people stood in the Dickson County Memorial Gardens Thursday as an emergency dispatcher called out to Joe Snow for the last time.

It was not until the dispatcher paged “Medic 249,” and for Snow by name, that some of his colleagues and loved ones finally broke down. People suddenly began sobbing or wiping sweat and tears from their faces, for they knew Snow would never again answer a call to duty.

A short time before the heart-wrenching call, dozens of emergency vehicles with lights blazing formed a funeral procession that passed under a huge American flag hung over state Highway 70 in Dickson County.

“He was the person that would be there any time you needed him,” Jess Gibbs, a local EMS worker, said after the funeral. “He worked a lot of bad calls and did a lot of good things. He saved a lot of lives.”

Snow’s death was a result of critical injuries he suffered in attempts to rescue Philipp Seifert and Vince “Pooh Bear” Kruk — 15 year-old boys killed after a jump into rain-swollen Ringgold Creek May 25. The creek’s swift undertow swept the boys downstream and over a 10-foot dam. Snow died Sunday after being removed from life support.

Eerily, only one photograph taken by EMS personnel at the May 25 scene was usable — it was of Snow in his water rescue gear.

The last photo taken of Snow hung in the Emergency Operations Complex Thursday evening, a physical testament to what slews of deputies, police officers, EMS workers and firefighters like Ricky Woodruff said about Snow.

“He was outgoing — bubbly,” said Woodruff, who worked with Snow for 10 years at the Cunningham Volunteer Fire Department. “He died doing what he loved to do.”

Both Woodruff and Jess Gibbs said Snow constantly spoke of his children. The eight-year veteran paramedic, who was a member of EMS’s swift water rescue team, leaves behind two sons — Michael, 7, and Matthew, 5 — who clutched folded American flags at the service.

“He was a great father,” said Gibbs. “Anytime he wasn’t at work, he was with them. He put them first. He always talked about them and was definitely a proud dad.”

Other survivors also include mother of his children, Lori Snow; his father and stepmother, Hank and Jeannie Snow; his brother, Justin Snow; his sister, Jennifer Snow; his grandparents, Bill and Marie Melson; and fiance, Dana Newsom.

Adding to the tragedy, Snow had not proposed to Newsom until the morning of May 25 — merely hours before the rescue attempt that resulted in his untimely death.

While many are left behind to grieve, it will not keep people like Snow’s partner, Chris Scull, from honoring and remembering him as a colleague, a hero and a friend.

“He had this thing about driving — he had to drive to every call. And his smile —he’s got this grin,” said Scull, recalling some of his favorite memories of Snow.

“You could never make him mad. No matter what you did, you could never make him mad. If you didn’t know something, he would teach you. He taught me things I’ll never forget — not just in EMS, but life itself. He was an awesome guy. He’ll always be there to watch over us.”

Melissa Tyndall can be reached by phone at 245-0719 or at melissatyndall@theleafchronicle.com.

Photo captions:

Montgomery County Emergency Medical Service members Tim Wells, left, Brooke Wilee and Lt. Dustin Haas watch the graveside services for Paramedic Joe Snow Thursday. Snow died after trying to save the lives of two drowning teens May 25. Haas was with him. Robert Smith/The Leaf-Chronicle

TO GET INVOLVED

• To donate to the Joe Snow Trust Fund, visit any AmSouth Bank.

ON THE NET

• To see more photos, visit us on the Net at www .theleafchronicle.com.

Above, members of an honor guard remove Snow’s flag-draped casket before burial at the Dickson County Memorial Gardens.

At left, EMS Deputy Chief Tony Norfleet gives Matthew and Michael Snow a U.S. flag in honor of their father.

photos by Robert Smith/The Leaf-Chronicle

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Copyright 1999

From=Staff; Byline=Melissa_Tyndall; Year=2006; Month=6; Month=Jun; Day=2; Day=Fr; Book=A;

Aspect=The_Leaf_Chronicle; Aspect=06/02/2006; Aspect=Front; Aspect=1; Aspect=Staff; Aspect=Melissa_Tyndall; Aspect=2006; Aspect=6; Aspect=Jun; Aspect=2; Aspect=Fr; Aspect=A;

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