Foxboro Paramedic Honored At Firefighter Of The Year Awards

FOXBOROUGH, MA — Corey Shepardson and a number of fire officials from North Attleboro were on a flight to Colorado Springs this year to honor their fallen brothers. For one man onboard that flight, he was lucky to have them.

Shepardson was honored alongside a number of his North Attleboro peers at the 33rd annual Firefighter of the Year awards recently. They were awarded a group citation for meritorious conduct.

On Sept. 16, 2021, North Attleboro Fire Chief Christopher Coleman, along with other off-duty and retired firefighters from North Attleborough and Foxborough, were on the IAFF Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial in Colorado Springs.

According to a news release, "they were about 45 minutes into their flight when they saw a fellow passenger in his 60s suddenly begin turning gray and become unresponsive. The man had no pulse."

The release continued:

"The group immediately removed him from his seat and into the aisle, where they administered CPR and advanced life support until they got a pulse. They were able to administer an IV line and stabilize him until the plane touched down in Chicago. The patient was transported by waiting paramedics to a local hospital and recovered."

“It’s an honor to be recognized alongside my fellow firefighters and friends at the 33rd annual Firefighter of the Year Awards,” Chief Coleman said.

“We had no idea what was going to happen when we got onto that flight that day, yet I’m extremely grateful we were all there and well-prepared with our EMS knowledge as we were able to save a life that day. I would like to personally recognize and thank Captain McKinnon, Captain Langille, Lt. Langille, Lt. Badger, and Firefighters McDonagh and Cory Shepardson for their response that day, as it truly was a joint effort.”