Hillsboro pastor named Kansas EMT of the year
Pastor John Ryding, of Hillsboro, has been given the state's top award for an emergency medical technician.
At a banquet held Saturday by the Kansas Emergency Medical Technician Association, Ryding was given the Outstanding Attendant award. The banquet was held in Great Bend.
Although he was nominated for the award by his fellow EMTs, Ryding had no idea what he was in for that night at the banquet, he said. Colleagues told him he was going to present an award.
But the surprise was this: He was getting an award, not giving one.
Ryding knows he was nominated by three Hillsboro crew members. He's found out who two are, but now he's trying to discover the third one, he said.
Ryding, who is pastor of the Zion Lutheran Church, joined the local EMT crew as an ambulance driver in 1989. He earned his certification to become a full EMT in 1990, he said.
In 1996, Ryding was elected crew captain, a position he still holds.
Ryding enjoys working as an EMT because it allows him to help people at the scene of an accident, not just stand around and watch, he said.
Ryding also pastors the Lutheran church in Marion and is a member of the local ministerial alliance. He also participates in the local Weather Watchers organization.
