Firefighter/Paramedic Dwayne Carlton was called in front of the San Marino City Council during its regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, May 9.
Carlton was unaware why he was asked to appear in public before the council, and his curiosity only grew when members of his shift also joined him in council chambers.
Then, San Marino City Manager Marcella Marlowe, new mother to 13-months-old Clark Marlowe, explained.
“As we all know, parents can feel overwhelmed when one of their children isn’t feeling well,” Marlowe said during the council meeting while Carlton and his shift crew listened. “Mom called 911 because her oldest daughter was not feeling good. (Firefighters and rescue personnel) treated her daughter, who needed advanced life support intervention and transport.”
Marlowe continued the story after telling the crowd that had packed council chambers that she was recently a new mother: “During this time, firefighter Dwayne Carlton noticed the younger sibling and recognized she needed some help. It was time to walk to school and she had not eaten breakfast and her mom never had a chance to pack a lunch. Mom was rushing to get her things together so that she could ride with (the ambulance) to the emergency room. Captain Maza watched Firefighter Carlton walk the young lady to the kitchen and make her breakfast. As she sat to eat, he packed her a lunch. Mom was beyond grateful, and he was beyond proud of Firefighter Carlton. What an amazing moment of compassion. It’s moments like these that remind us what a remarkable group we have here.”
Marlowe said it’s important to recognize these kinds of actions at the council meeting.
“I asked (San Marino Fire) Chief Rueda to have (Firefighter) Carlton present so that I could acknowledge him – he did NOT know why they’d been asked to come,” Marlowe said in an email after the City Council meeting. “I have no idea if any of the others did, but the Chief and I wanted to surprise him. I try to acknowledge positive things about employees at every Wednesday council meeting during my City Manager’s Report, but this one seemed above and beyond, so I wanted to have him there.”
