Honorees

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Year Honored
1995
Honoree
Karen L Canada
Agency
Aircare, North Carolina Baptist Hospitals
Agency City
Winston-Salem
Agency State
NC
Last Call
4/22/94
Cause of Death
Medical Aviation Accident
Biography
"Being a true Caregiver is like the experience of Buddhism. The feeling for it comes from the heart. You have the dedication to give what you know you need. When it becomes part of you, you know you have it. You succeed at it."<br /> <br /> One of Lynn's paramedic students at Guilford Technical Community College wrote these words after her death. It represents what Lynn instilled in her students and how they felt about her. In fact, the Class of 1994 nominated Lynn to be honored at the 1995 National EMS Memorial Service.<br /> <br /> In addition to her teaching duties, Lynn, a certified critical care and emergency nurse, was a full-time flight nurse for AirCare, a hospital-based helicopter service dedicated to the transport of critically ill patients. She was a member of the Certified Flight Registered Nurse and Emergency Nurses Association, the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, the Certified Emergency Nurse and Emergency Nurses CARE, and the National Flight Nurses Association.<br /> <br /> On Friday, April 22, 1994 Lynn was on an AirCare helicopter headed from North Carolina Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem to Bluefield, West Virginia to pick up a patient. The weather was rainy and extremely foggy, and the crew was flying by instruments. Just seven miles from the Mercer County Airport the helicopter crashed into East River Mountain. There had been no indication the crew was having difficulties. All four crew members were killed. Lynn was 38 years old and had flown with AirCare since 1986.<br /> <br /> Speaking on behalf of the Paramedic Class of 1994, Denise Ward wrote: "Lynn was an inspiration and guiding light to her students and her patients."<br /> <br /> Honored 1995