A crowd in Park City honored the first responders of the year on Saturday and learned about their dedication to the safety and health of the public through their work in the police, fire and emergency services.

The Park City Lodge of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks held an annual ceremony in front of Miners Hospital under partly sunny skies after a morning of rain. The event is designed to highlight law enforcement and emergency departments in the Park City area by presenting an award to one person from each department.

Andrew Caplan, senior ruler of the Park City Lodge, described the honorees as people who help hold the area together.

“These are local heroes. They are people who protect and serve the community,” Caplan said, calling the emergency responders the “backbone of the community.”

He added, “These are the people who make Park City a safe and wonderful place to live.”

The honorees received gift certificates to Ruth’s Chris Steak House.

The crowd gathered outside the historic building in City Park to hear presentations about the honorees. Many of those in attendance were members of the various agencies or family members and friends of the honorees.

The honorees and brief descriptions of their service as outlined in the Elks Lodge summaries:

• Clint Parker, a detective with the Park City Police Department. Parker started with the department as a traffic cop. He was promoted to a detective position in 2022 and is assigned to cases described as “child abuse cases.”

“These cases cause vicarious trauma for the investigator, and Clint doggedly investigates each one to ensure the safety of the children,” the summary states.

It also states that over the past two years, Parker has “led an investigation that interviewed approximately 150 child victims” at the local Children’s Justice Center.

• Daniela Anderson, Summit County Sheriff’s Deputy. Anderson started with the Sheriff’s Office in 2022 in the corrections division before moving to patrol duty in 2023. A nomination letter from the Sheriff’s Office said Anderson speaks Spanish and “is quick to utilize her ability to communicate in Spanish to assist other officers and the public in any way possible.”

She also works on a sheriff’s office outreach program created to help the underserved in Summit County, including the Latino community.

“Representative Anderson has generated a great deal of excitement through her involvement in this program, and many people now travel from neighboring communities and counties to attend events and gather information from Representative Anderson and her team,” the nomination letter states.

• Sam Robison, Park City Fire District firefighter. In a nomination letter, Robison is described as an “all-around exceptional firefighter and emergency medical technician” and a “consummate leader and mentor to everyone he comes into contact with.”

“His calm, friendly and approachable demeanor allows him to really connect with the people he teaches and he has had a tremendous impact on improving the confidence and skills of our first responders,” the letter said.

The letter explains that Robison, for example, identified areas in a paramedic training program that could be improved.

• Michael Dean, Park City Fire District EMS. In a nomination letter, Dean is described as an “outstanding” firefighter-paramedic and critical care emergency medical technician.

He is “known for his commitment to excellence in emergency medicine and plays a central role in improving standards of care and training programs in the community,” the nomination states.

It says Dean played a key role in “coordinating closely with state and local medical regulators to ensure compliance with best practices and protocols” and mentions his work on an emergency medical procedure called rapid sequence intubation, which helps control a person’s airway.

“These efforts will benefit Park City Hospital and residents by improving patient outcomes through more effective and timely interventions,” the nomination states.

• Kaleb Rowell, a trooper with the Utah Highway Patrol. Information presented at Saturday’s event states Rowell has a degree in criminal justice from Southern Utah University. He joined the agency in 2022 and is assigned to the Highway Patrol division that covers Summit County and Wasatch County.

Rowell helps train new police officers at the department and is an “informal leader” of the department, the information says.

“He is always looking for ways to improve our area and serve the people of Utah,” it says.