August 21, 2013 at 3:55 p.m.
Desire helps pave career path for Sherri Congleton
Desire helps pave career path for Sherri Congleton
For the drivers involved in the accident, it was the kind of experience they hope to never again encounter.
But for Sherri Congleton, the new manager of Oneida County's 911 Center, dealing with disaster is just part of the job.
"When people call into our office, when they call into the dispatch center, people are usually in some kind of need," Congleton said. "Something bad has happened to them, whether it's a medical emergency or there's a burglary in progress. It's usually a cry for some kind of help and they're in distress."
Though Congleton has been on the job for less than a month as the 911 center's manager, she has years of on-the-ground experience helping people in emergencies.
That perspective, officials say, is a valuable asset to the county and its residents.
Northwoods native
Congleton, 43, was born and raised in Eagle River and graduated from Northland Pines High School. She enrolled at Mount Mary College in Milwaukee and earned a bachelor's degree in communications and public relations. She has also completed work toward a master's degree, she said.
Five years ago she was living on the East Coast, volunteering as an emergency medical technician, and decided to move back home.
She got a job with Vilas County as a dispatcher, and also did EMT work for Vilas, Oneida and Lincoln counties.
Congleton said her interest in emergency services stems from her childhood: Growing up, she admired EMTs and the work they did.
"It was just something I always liked," Congleton said. "When I grew up in Eagle River it was a volunteer service. It's not anymore. I can remember people doing it, and I always thought it was a neat thing."
Congleton began working for Oneida County's 911 center as a dispatcher about a year ago.
Her favorite part of the job, she said, "kind of goes back to why I liked EMS. I like helping people."
Job fits background
Oneida County's 911 Center used to be managed by a sworn lieutenant in the sheriff's office. But that changed - in part because of a retirement, and in part because the sheriff's office and emergency management department merged.
When the manager position opened up, Congleton said applying made sense.
"I've worked in EMS, I've worked in corrections, I've worked in dispatch, but I also have management experience," she said.
Ken Kortenhof, Oneida County's emergency management director, thought Congleton was a good fit for the job, too.
"It's actually less expensive to have a civilian employee in there versus a sworn employee," Kortenhof said. "A civilian employee like Sherri has the ability and certainly the aptitude to do the job."
Kortenhof said he's noticed a trend of other counties hiring civilian personnel to manage 911 centers, which typically entails oversight of day-to-day operations, as well as training, scheduling and administrative work such as budgeting.
That's no easy task. Oneida County's 911 center received nearly 30,000 calls for service in 2012, and often receives more than one call for major incidents.
"You know one thing about the dispatch center, you can't really tell when it's going to be busy," Kortenhof said. "You get a car accident and it's just chaos. It gets really busy in there. You just don't know when that stuff is going to happen."
Which is why Kortenhof said Congleton's work history as an EMT and dispatcher, and her education and experience in communications, are so important.
"We service people that are in a need, and typically in a crisis, and that's why having someone with Sherri's background is so important, because you get these calls in from an excited person," Kortenhof said. "Being able to extract the information you need from that person and then being able to deliver it to a first responder to get that person to the scene is huge."
That advantage showed a couple weeks ago.
After the car and pickup truck collided on Hwy. 47, near Lake Tomahawk, someone dialed 911. The call was routed to the county's 911 center, which then dispatched emergency crews.
Firefighters, medics and police from Minocqua and Woodruff soon descended on the scene, as did Oneida County Sheriff's deputies. They had to shut down the highway.
The driver of the car, Laura Borski, of Rhinelander, was hospitalized with serious but not life-threatening injuries. She was later treated and released.
That was good news to Matt Brock, the owner of the truck Borski hit.
"I'm really glad she's alive," Brock said in an interview with The Lakeland Times. "Things can be replaced. People can't."
Jonathan Anderson may be reached at [email protected]
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