Air Evac Lifeteam crew members celebrate career milestones

There are more than 1,800 pilots and medical crew members who work for Air Evac Lifeteam, and only a handful achieve the 1,000 patient flights milestone.

Donald Mixon, Senior Program Director for Air Evac Lifeteam, said the air medical base is blessed with the five high-quality crew members. “They’ve all been with us almost as long as the Jesup Air Evac base has been here – since 2012,” Mixon said. “We greatly appreciate their dedication to safety, patient care and to our base and community.”

Mario Rodriguez, Flight Nurse/Paramedic; Chad Lariscy, Flight Nurse; Ken Herrin, Flight Paramedic; and Rick Mallick and Matt Keanon, Pilots, have all earned their 1,000th flight wings.

Being an integral part of the community

Rick Mallick, Base Pilot Supervisor for the Jesup Air Evac base, said although 1,000 patient flights sounds like a lot, he thinks it is more impressive that five crew members have reached that pinnacle. “Jesup is a very special base in that we have little to no turnover,” Mallick said. “I look forward to the next 1,000 patients.”

Mario Rodriguez lives in Jesup. “The best part of my job is being an integral part of my community and providing access to a higher level of healthcare,” he said.

Matt Keanon said he loves serving the community in which he lives, all while doing something he loves. “It has been an honor and a privilege to help so many people in need of critical care,” Keanon said. “I hope to continue serving our community for many years to come.”

Chad Lariscy and Ken Herrin echoed the others’ comments, adding that being able to help the critically ill or injured in their time of need – especially those who live more than an hour away from a Level 1 or 2 trauma center, stroke or heart center – is incredibly rewarding.