Maine’s Oldest EMT Finally Hangs Up Her Hero Cape at 88 Years Old
Meet Edna Mitchell, Liberty Maine Volunteer Ambulance Driver Since 1978
By Mae Velasco, HeroFuel® Reporter
It’s 5 A.M. and two cars collided in a head-on crash. Who rushed onto the scene?
No, it isn’t Wonder Woman in her Invisible Jet, nor is it Batman speeding in with his Batmobile — it’s 88-year-old Edna Mitchell, a hero zipping to the rescue in her ambulance.
Liberty volunteer ambulance driver Edna Mitchell isn’t the strapping, young EMT most people would picture. With silver hair and a heart of gold, her wrinkles tell a story of decades of hard work, joy and wisdom. The fire in her eyes speaks volumes on her determination and warm, kind personality.
“I’m outgoing. I like people. I usually like to see the good in a person. And I make excuses for the others, I guess,” Mitchell told HeroFuel® when asked about how she carries herself. “My friends say I’m intelligent, honest and flexible. My granddaughter says I’m practical and sensible.”
And you have to be all those things to be as dedicated of a first responder as she is. At 88 years old, Mitchell is Maine’s oldest EMT — or was, until she recently retired in early October of this year. That 5 A.M. accident was actually her last call.
“The occupants weren’t hurt badly and just needed to be checked over and signed off. The other EMT was at the scene with the fire department, so I took the ambulance and went to the scene alone,” she said.
But not all her calls have been that calm. Being a volunteer EMT for the Liberty Fire Department since 1978 — that’s 38 years, people — meant she handled more than 100 calls a year over 400 square miles of coastal Maine, hitting just under 4,000 rides in her career.
And one of her most memorable calls to action?
“My sister-in-law dropped down dead at a dance. I started CPR,” Mitchell said. “They brought her back to the hospital and she lived about another 25 years. I always thought she went through an awful lot, but she was always so thankful.”
A Day in the Life of Edna and Her Road to Becoming an EMT
Even for the best of us, it’s no easy feat to stay in shape, but Mitchell does that and more. She walks two miles at the park before dawn. She swims every day. She sleds down her hill when it snows. She gardens and harvests her vegetables in the sun. She mows her own lawn.
“Now that’s acres, not just a little lawn,” Mitchell laughed. “I belong to TOPS [Club, Inc.]. That stands for ‘Take Off Pounds Sensibly,’ and I’ve belonged there since 1970. And I’ve kept my pounds off for 38 years — so, I guess that’s KOPS!”
But how did Mitchell go from having a drive for self-improvement to driving an ambulance in order to save lives?
“Well, that’s quite a long story. Back when I was a teenager, back in World War II, my parents took a first aid class. I think I was about 14,” Mitchell said.
She practiced and studied with them. When it came to the day of the test, she decided to jump on the bandwagon and take it, too.
“I didn’t have an idea if I did very well or not, but it was a game warden who taught the course, and he went back and told people I got a higher rank than everyone in the class!” she said. “And I was always kind of interested in things [emergency medical services] like that, so a friend of mine wanted me to go be on the board of directors of the ambulance. Somehow, I don’t know, I figured I’d rather be an ambulance attendant.”
Before volunteering, Mitchell wore a few other hats. She was a teacher for 29 years. During the first four, she taught four grades in a one-room schoolhouse. There, she was the janitor, the bus driver, and even the lunch lady who cooked all the meals on an old wood stove. Eventually, it dwindled down to three grades in one room, before she became a principal who taught math, science and social studies.
“I did it, and I thought I did well,” Mitchell said. “And then I taught eighth grade math…but I guess that’s what did me in in the end!”
While her teaching career ended, her volunteer EMT career began. Except for Wednesday afternoons for her meetings in town and Thursday nights for family suppers (a tradition in her family for more than 50 years, she noted), Mitchell was always on call and tuned into her pager — and this was before they used radios, so she was always three strides to the nearest phone.
In 38 years, there have been a handful of moments that she looks back on, some heartbreaking and others heartwarming. One was particularly amusing.
“One night we had a call. It was snowing. You could just barely get through the snow with the ambulance. We got in, the man was having a heart attack and the man said, ‘Now, what’s an old woman like you doing out on a night like this?’” Mitchell reminisced. “And I said, ‘Do you want to go to the hospital or not?’”
Another joyful moment for her was just this past summer.
Mitchell was on a call, and the woman in need was only 69 years old.
“I felt so bad. I just kept thinking about it,” Mitchell admitted.
About two weeks afterward, when she made another stop at the hospital, one of the people working in the emergency room wanted to show her a card.
“He said, ‘Do you remember the lady you were doing CPR on?’ And then he said she walked in with this thank you card,” Mitchell recalled. “And I’ll tell you, I danced out of that emergency room. I was so happy!”
A Life Worth Celebrating
Mitchell has always been about family and the little things in life. She has even written two books, one called “Then” and the other titled “Now,” about those very things — life, family, neighbors, farming, growing up during the Great Depression and the other milestones that shaped the woman she became.
Her humble nature, kindness and caring spirit made it no surprise that, well, people wanted to surprise her with a retirement party! More than 100 people — fellow first responders, community members, friends and family — came together to celebrate her accomplishments.
With rounds of hugs, a giant stack of cards, a huge bouquet and a whole lotta’ food, the joy at the party was a blur, but one gift stood out.
It was an unfinished painting, a square piece of about five or six inches wide set in glass, of an owl perched on a limb. A woman handed it to her, the painting a project in process by her late husband.
Mitchell had met him during one call when she couldn’t find a driver and needed help. She walked into a store near where the ambulance was kept and asked if there was someone with a driver’s license and a strong back.
“This man volunteered. It was nice to have a picture that he painted. It was lovely. It’s the little things like that that make life interesting,” Mitchell said.
Just by living each day, she has become a role model for those around her. She has even inspired a legacy within her family, with two granddaughters and a great granddaughter following in her footsteps. Her youngest granddaughter is also in the medical field as a nurse in oncology.
And how does Mitchell feel now that her metaphorical ambulance is permanently in park?
“I think I’m going to miss it. I know I’m going to miss ambulance work more than anything I’ve ever done, and I’ve done a lot of different kinds of work,” she said.
Still, just because she’s no longer an EMT doesn’t mean her job is done. She’s setting out to inspire others to do the same and has several words of advice:
“Stay as calm as you can. Do only what you’re trained to do. Learn from each experience. And remember that hindsight is 20/20. You did what you did and hoped it was for the best,” she said.
“And one more thing,” Mitchell said. “Try being an EMT. You’ll like it. Try it, you’ll like it.”
