A Letter to Hometown Heroes

A Letter from the Families of AUB to Our Hometown Heroes

All of the people and families associated with Athens Utilities Board thank and salute our Hometown Hero first responders across the spectrum of community services they provide to all of us.

 We understand and deeply appreciate the value of our community law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency response teams, and those who calmly and efficiently dispatch these critical responders in times of need, whether routine or unimaginably horrific.

 Like the New York City first responders on that fateful day in 2001, our hometown heroes move toward danger, not away from it.  They take the call and they go.   Without hesitation, they head into scenarios and unselfishly subject themselves to situations that most of us will never have to handle, and don’t wish to.

 Simply stated, they put their lives on the line for others, for the community, all in the name of service.  Furthermore, they consider this their duty to the people they serve.  That’s a hero.

 The people and families of AUB understand this and are honored to work in sync with these first responders when calamity strikes and the calls for help come pouring in.  We probably can’t imagine what it is like to face an armed suspect in a dark parking lot, to walk into flame-engulfed building, or to feel the responsibility of saving a stranger’s life at the scene of an accident.

But we watch our own AUB colleagues perform, with amazing dedication, dangerous work in the dead of night, often in conditions that keep the rest of us inside our homes waiting for the responders to arrive.  All in the name of service to the community.

All of these first responders possess a characteristic fortitude and a Hero’s ability to serve ‘round the clock, 365 days a year, even if not always fully appreciated.  But they never fail to respond when the call for service comes.  Because that’s what Heroes do.

 So thank you, Hometown Heroes.  And thanks as well to the families that send you off to serve us every day.   You provide the essential services, order and protection, and emergency support without which the community could not survive.  For that and all you do, we appreciate you.

The people and families of AUB.