MTSU representation aplenty among Red Cross ‘Heroes Luncheon’ honorees

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University was well represented among honorees at the “Heroes Luncheon” hosted by the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter in the Student Union Ballroom.

Hundreds of Red Cross supporters attended the annual event earlier this month during which Red Cross officials review its disaster response efforts for the previous year and shares updates about its various services such as its blood drives and first-aid training and the ongoing need for volunteers and donations to support its mission.

This year’s top luncheon “Heroes” honoree was MTSU alumnus and former Rutherford County Mayor Ernest Burgess, while the volunteer spotlight honoree was Mary Nichols, retired MTSU professor emeritus of media arts/electronic media communication.

Also receiving special recognition at the March 5 event were a group of MTSU student workers and University Police officers who responded to a medical emergency earlier in the semester at the Health, Wellness and Recreation Center that helped save the life of a cardiac arrest victim.

Former Rutherford County Mayor Ernest Burgess gives remarks after being presented the Heroes Award during the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter’s “Heroes Luncheon” on March 5, 2024, at the Middle Tennessee State University Student Union Ballroom in Murfreesboro, Tenn. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt)

‘To help others in need’

A lifelong Rutherford County resident, Burgess was lauded by the Red Cross for his work as head of county government from 2006 until 2018, “leading the community through a period of unprecedented growth” and helping bring in much needed infrastructure such as the Rutherford County Judicial Center and establishment of a full-time county fire department.

In a tribute video shown to luncheon attendees, Burgess praised the Red Cross and its volunteers for their disaster response efforts throughout the years following severe weather striking various parts of the community as well as the nonprofit’s ongoing efforts to collect blood donations such as periodically bringing its bloodmobile to court square to make it more convenient for donors working downtown.

In accepting the special award from Red Cross Executive Director John Mitchell, Burgess urged the crowd to follow the Red Cross’ example of helping those needing a helping hand.

“As I get older, I begin to understand what is really important in life. I want to remind each of us that we have individual responsibilities and duties to use our minds, our abilities, our resources, our physical capabilities and our mental capabilities, to do what? To help others in need,” Burgess said.

“To compliment them, to encourage them, to set a good example and model for them. … We should do the right thing without receiving any personal gain, except for the respect and appreciation received from those that we serve.”

LaShan Dixon, MTSU alumnus, director of Faith-Based and Community Engagement, Division of Health Disparities Elimination, within the Tennessee Department of Health — LaShan Dixon

Luncheon master of ceremony and Red Cross board chair LaShan Dixon, also an MTSU alumna, praised Burgess and his efforts in partnership with the County Commission for providing her with an opportunity to become the county’s assistant public health director at the Rutherford County Health Department, where she would eventually be named director.

She now serves as director of Faith-Based and Community Engagement, Division of Health Disparities Elimination, within the Tennessee Department of Health.

“It is because of the support of former Mayor Burgess, and the support of a number of individuals sitting at his table today, that I am who I am today,” she said.

Retired Middle Tennessee State University electronic media communication professor Mary Nichols, left, gives remarks after being presented the Volunteer Spotlight Award during the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter’s “Heroes Luncheon” on March 5, 2024, at the MTSU Student Union Ballroom. At right is Jonathan Taylor, Red Cross Disaster Program manager, who presented the award. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt)

‘This is something that takes a village’

After retiring from MTSU in 2014, Nichols joined the Red Cross as a volunteer in 2018, prompted by her experience as a video engineer at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where the poverty and suffering she witnessed among residents there compelled her to do something constructive to help those in need.

She eventually became at disaster action team associate with Red Cross, then started to deploy as needed in sheltering, distribution of emergency supplies, as well as feeding and damage assessment roles, according to Red Cross. She volunteers locally for flooding and tornado events as well as regional and national disasters.

That included the Red Cross’ response to a devastating tornado that struck Readyville, Tennessee, in April 2023, which was partially chronicled in a video by MTSU alumnus and multimedia professional Nick Paranjape that was shown to the luncheon audience and featured Nichols and other Red Cross volunteers and residents assisted by their response.

“I’m really honored and more than a little humbled by this,” said Nichols, who was presented her special volunteer award by Jonathan Taylor, Red Cross Disaster Program manager. “But nothing we do at the Red Cross is done by ourselves. This is something that takes a village. … It’s not that we want to be heroes, we just want to be good neighbors.”

Middle Tennessee State University’s Ray Wiley, associate director of MTSU Campus Recreation and longtime Red Cross volunteer, discusses emergency response training offered through the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter during the organization’s “Heroes Luncheon” on March 5, 2024, at the MTSU Student Union Ballroom. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt)

‘An incredible story’

In sharing information about the organization’s training efforts, longtime Red Cross volunteer and board member Ray Wiley, associate director of MTSU Campus Recreation, introduced a video by WKRN-TV News 2 that highlighted a late January emergency at the Recreation Center involving retired computer science professor Richard Detmer, who suffered a cardiac event while playing racquetball.

For 18 years, Detmer and playing partner Raj Srivastava, a marketing professor had played twice a week at the Rec, but as their final game wrapped up on Friday, Jan. 19, Detmer collapsed, prompting student workers at the facility to quickly call upon their Red Cross training.

Campus Recreation student workers Julia Rutledge, Gatlin Murr, Andrew Scrugham and Jasmine Jackson called 911 but more importantly began administering CPR and deployed one of the four Automated External Defibrillators, or AEDs, at the center until University Police’s Angela Todd, a master police officer, and Patrol Lt. Walter Spain arrived.

Wiley pointed to all of their efforts as being critical to saving Detmer’s life before Murfreesboro Fire Rescue Department transported him to a local hospital. Now fully recovered and with a small defibrillator in his upper chest, Detmer, 78, attended the luncheon along with his wife of 56 years, Carol Detmer, and were recognized along with three of the four students (Jackson was unable to attend) as well as Spain and Sgt. Blake Durham, an emergency response trainer who attended on behalf of Todd.

Standing, from left, John Mitchell, executive director of the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter, makes a special presentation to MTSU Campus Recreation student workers Andrew Scrugham, Julia Rutledge and Gatlin Murr on March 5, 2024, during the chapter’s “Heroes Luncheon” at the MTSU Student Union Ballroom in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The students were recognized for their life-saving emergency response to cardiac arrest survivor and retired MTSU professor Richard Detmer, seated at center. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt)

Middle Tennessee State University Police Sgt. Blake Durham, an emergency response trainer for the department, and Patrol Lt. Walter Spain, seated right in uniform, are recognized during the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter’s “Heroes Luncheon” on March 5, 2024, for their lifesaving support to a cardiac arrest incident at the Campus Recreation Center. Durham attended on behalf of Master Police Officer Angela Todd, who responded the incident along with Spain. The luncheon was held at the Middle Tennessee State University Student Union Ballroom in Murfreesboro, Tenn. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt) (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt) — Middle Tennessee State University Police Sgt. Blake Durham, an emergency response trainer for the department, and Patrol Lt. Walter Spain, seated right in uniform, are recognized during the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter’s “Heroes Luncheon” on March 5, 2024, for their lifesaving support to a cardiac arrest incident at the Campus Recreation Center. Durham attended on behalf of Master Police Officer Angela Todd, who responded the incident along with Spain. The luncheon was held at the Middle Tennessee State University Student Union Ballroom in Murfreesboro, Tenn. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt)

“I feel doubly blessed to work at Middle Tennessee State University, a university that cares about others and does its best to plan ahead,” Wiley told the audience. “But also as a board member and longtime volunteer of the Red Cross, these two blend together so well because we share the same passion.”

He called the successful emergency response to Detmer “an incredible story of what happens when people are trained, and when people are willing to step up and respond when they have the necessary equipment they need to sustain a life.”

Wiley noted that “first few minutes are critical” when someone suffers cardiac arrest and that the typical survival rate out of hospital without an AED on the scene is just 7% for Rutherford County. He encouraged the crowd to take advantage of the CPR and AED training offered by Red Cross.

Humanitarian law program at MTSU

Meanwhile, MTSU professor Amy Atchison, chair of the university’s political science department, shared information about a program she brought to campus called the American Red Cross Youth Action Campaign.

Middle Tennessee State University professor Amy Atchison, chair of the university’s political science department, shares information about the American Red Cross Youth Action Campaign during the American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee Chapter’s “Heroes Luncheon” held March 5, 2024, at the MTSU Student Union Ballroom in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The campaign educates communities about the rules of war through interactive initiatives and is sponsored by the Red Cross’ Service to the Armed Forces division. (MTSU photo by Andy Heidt)

The campaign is part of the nonprofit’s International Humanitarian Law program, which educates communities about the rules of war through interactive initiatives. It is sponsored by the Red Cross’ Service to the Armed Forces division.

The free program offers a variety of opportunities for MTSU students to raise awareness about the Geneva Conventions, the basic rules of humanitarian law and the role of Red Cross during armed conflicts. The most recent program focused on the use of nuclear weapons.

“It is a peer-to-peer education campaign that students develop into a full line of programming to educate their peers about the rules of war,” she said, noting that the 14-member MTSU team easily surpassed the goal of 300 contacts for the Tennessee region by interacting with more than 550 people and logging nearly 500 youth volunteer hours between September and early December.

The Heart of Tennessee Chapter awarded the students its Next Generation Award for their work on the successful campaign, she said.

The American Red Cross Heart of Tennessee serves Bedford, Cannon, Coffee, DeKalb, Franklin, Lincoln, Marshall, Moore, Rutherford and Warren counties in Tennessee. For more information about its services and how you can donate or volunteer, call 615-893-4272 or visit the website at https://redcross.org/heartoftn.

— Jimmy Hart (Jimmy.Hart@mtsu.edu)