Lone Star Search and Rescue volunteers Chris Arnold, Beth Hudson, Kaitlyn Disque, Michele Benjamin, Angie Cox, Terry Benjamin and Penelope Winchester Roberts Herring in June at the Texas Division of Emergency Management Conference in Fort Worth. Courtesy Michelle Benjamin
Lone Star Search and Rescue Director Terry Benjamin often asks the question, “If not us, then who?”
Search and rescue is learned by failing, he says, not being successful.
His command trailer has been equipped with things they realized they needed on search and rescue missions. The radio system has a repeater so everyone can hear when someone calls in. The trailer now has two commercial grade generators after they lost power on one mission. They have chainsaws, a UTV, ATVs and infrared units.
Based in Wylie, the faith-based nonprofit canine search and rescue team is a ministry of The Cross Church funded by donations. With over 20 members, Lone Star Search and Rescue trains every weekend and typically does about 35 searches each year. They partner with dozens of Texas and Oklahoma police departments, who essentially let the nonprofit handle search and rescue missions.
“We’re a force multiplier for police departments,” Benjamin said. “Once we get there, they don’t have to send out all their deputies and officers.”
About a third of their searches involve locating people with dementia who have gone missing.
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By Jeremy Hallock | [email protected]
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