Two paramedics familiar to people in Westman have been honoured for their service and contributions. Former Neepawa Mayor and Councillor Ron Forsman, and his sone Dwayne Forsman, traveled to Ottawa last Monday, Nov. 19 to receive the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Award for their significant commitment to improving the health and safety of Canadians through their work in the paramedics field. “We feel that your endeavours have strengthened a vital area of Canadian life,” the congratulatory letter to Ron stated. The Forsmans were two of only 30 paramedics from across Canada to be honoured with the Jubilee Award through the Paramedic Association of Canada. The awards were given out on the second floor at Parliament Hill. “To be with those people in Ottawa, and to receive the award with my son, Dwayne, it made me feel that I’ve got to be happy with what I’ve done,” Ron said. “It really makes it all worthwhile.” Ron first got interested in becoming a paramedic while working with White’s Funeral Home. White’s used to run the ambulatory service in part because they had a hearse and stretcher readily available. In 1975 Ron saw an opportunity to provide Neepawa with an ambulatory service and started the Neepawa Ambulance Service. He spent 30 years as operator of the ambulance services, retiring in 2005. While operating the ambulance, Ron helped buoy the careers of numerous paramedics, offered reliable services, lobbied for better funding for ambulance services across the country, and always kept his private business patient-oriented. "I don’t think of what we had as a private ambulance service, I think of it as a service to the community,” Forsman said of his approach. “We all gave a 100 per cent effort every time.” After retiring, Forsman still looked out for the paramedics field in part by voicing his concerns as a Town councillor for Neepawa. One of his most significant post-retirement successes came in 2005 when Ron questioned Government officials at an AMM convention about the costs of inter-facility transfers for rural patients. His comments catalyzed the Provincial Government’s decision in 2006 to fund the full patient cost of inter-facility transports a year later, saving patients roughly $7 million each year. Ron also got his family involved in the paramedics business, which helped lead his son Dwayne to receive the Jubilee Award last Monday as well. Dwayne began his career working with his father in Neepawa and went on to serve 30 years as a paramedic. Included in his long list of achievements is that he is the secretary-treasurer of the Canada Paramedic Association, spent time training other paramedics and, since retiring, has set up and run the paramedics program at Red River College. “We were proud to see him get the award,” Norma Forsman, Ron’s wife, said. “He’s continuing to carry his dad’s torch.”