Meet Your Neighbor

Mary Polenske

January 21, 2007

Director
Sun Prairie EMS

In the mid-1970s, Mary Polenske responded to a newspaper ad seeking volunteer emergency workers within the community. Little did she know this simple action would spawn 30 years of involvement with the city's Emergency Medical Services program, including her current role as director.

Along the way, she's seen a lot of change.

For the first 10 years, explains Polenske, volunteer emergency medical technicians worked together with police officers trained in basic life-support skills. Both groups operated out of the same building downtown, where there was room for just one ambulance and not much more.

An employee of M&I Bank at the time, Polenske was permitted to leave her job to respond to calls. She appreciates the flexibility her former employer gave her, and notes that many other local companies have done the same for their EMT-trained staff.

Polenske worked side-by-side with scores of those volunteers over the years. "They did a phenomenal job," she says.

Department grows with municipality

About 15 years ago, as Sun Prairie EMS started feeling the crunch of an expanding city, the service added a second ambulance.

A decade ago, the department's commitment stepped up even further with volunteers being trained in more advanced life-saving skills.

Soon, says Polenske, it became clear that full-time staff were necessary. "And it made sense to look at the paramedic level."

Today, the city has 12 full-time paramedics plus Polenske and operations supervisor Mark Wilcox. There are also several limited-term paramedics who fill in when others are sick or on vacation.

In 2006, crews responded to 1,860 calls, up from 1,724 in 2005. For the past five years, call volume has increased roughly 7-10 percent annually.

"Our two ambulances have been very, very busy," says Polenske. Local call numbers exceed those for the Middleton service but trail Fitch-Rona.

One more change

Soon, Sun Prairie EMS will experience another change as half of the department relocates to the new Westside Services Building, enabling faster response times on that side of town.

A year and a half from retirement, Polenske is excited about the move and how the department has evolved over three decades.

Looking back, she has no regrets.

"All my goals have been met," she says. "I've loved it."