WATCH: For just the second time on Vancouver Island this year, the BC Ambulance Service honoured one of its longstanding paramedics who recently passed away. Glen House was a paramedic for 47 years. On Saturday, his family and his professional family honoured his life of service. Kendall Hanson was there.
It was a ceremony for one of their own. A paramedic honour guard recognized the service of Glen House, a paramedic of 47 years, on Saturday.
“We’re shoulder to shoulder in the trenches and we do a difficult job,” said Sgt. Major John Wright of the BC Ambulance Honour Guard. “The job is not an easy one so we have to be there for each other.”
For those who knew and worked with House, his passing is a great loss.
Arele Caumartin was a colleague of 25 years.
“Glen was just a great guy, great paramedic, great family man, a great friend and he’s going to be sorely missed,” said Caumartin.
House started working as a paramedic in Alberta before moving to Vancouver Island in 1969. He was working for the private ambulance service before the government formed and operated the BC Ambulance service in 1974.
“Glen was one of those individuals who was the essence of the creation of BC Ambulance Service in 1974,” said one of his colleagues at his funeral.
Among his accomplishments was organizing the Critical Incident Stress Debriefing Program. He worked in Nanaimo, Parksville and Victoria before he retired.
He was fondly called “Papa House” by many of the paramedics he worked with and mentored. Other paramedics say he treated patients like they were his family members.
“As a paramedic, I would not be the one I am without his mentoring. he was kind and loving and never said a mean word to any of us that screwed up,” said another colleague at his funeral.
And he’s remembered as being as much a family man as he was a paramedic.
“He was just an amazing man,” said his son Frank House. “The most honest, fairest person I’ve ever met. He’s been my mentor, my hero and yes, it’s tough.”
Glen suffered from Alzheimer’s disease before a recent stroke.
House leaves behind his wife, two children and eight grandchildren among other family members.
Glen House was 75 years old.
Kendall Hanson
