{"id":480,"date":"2026-05-17T22:04:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T22:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=480"},"modified":"2026-05-17T22:04:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T22:04:09","slug":"a-volunteer-group-has-helped-longmont-police-during-emergencies-for-decades-money-trouble-puts-its-future-in-question","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=480","title":{"rendered":"A volunteer group has helped Longmont police during emergencies for decades. Money trouble puts its future in question."},"content":{"rendered":"
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For nearly a decade, Lt. Ryan Medhurst has spent his free time responding to emergencies in Longmont. Whether tasked with sweeping up broken glass after a car crash, conducting traffic or wading through a pond at 3 a.m. searching for a stolen gun, Medhurst takes pride in the work.<\/p>\n

Read more Thousands flocked to the National Mall in Washington for an America-themed prayer rally<\/a><\/p>\n

An information technology specialist by day, Medhurst is part of a small group of people \u2014 some retired, others with different day jobs \u2014 who volunteer with the Longmont Emergency Unit. Members of the all-volunteer search and rescue organization are trained in emergency medicine and respond to traffic crashes, conduct water rescues, and help police with traffic control and evidence recovery.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not a glamorous job, but it\u2019s a necessary one, Medhurst said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re problem solvers,\u201d he said, adding, \u201cWe\u2019re all here to keep the public safe, keep all their first responders safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The unit has helped with emergency services in Longmont and around Boulder County since 1957. In recent years, however, the unit has struggled to recruit volunteers and secure enough funding.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s getting a little tight. If we don\u2019t figure it out, either with donations or other contracts, there is a reality that we may not be here in the future,\u201d said former LEU Chief Mike Anderson. \u201cOnce we go through our savings, that\u2019s it. Then we can\u2019t pay the power bill.\u201d<\/p>\n

Change over time<\/h4>\n

The Longmont Emergency Unit formed in the summer of 1957 after the drowning of three brothers in Izaak Walton Pond highlighted a need for people experienced in water-related rescues. The unit\u2019s dive rescue team became one of the first in Colorado, according to Times-Call archives.<\/p>\n

Over the decades, the all-volunteer group led searches for downed planes and missing people, rescued kids who fell into lakes and rivers, and extricated people from crashed cars. They\u2019ve stationed themselves at the Boulder County Fair, parades and other large events in case of medical emergencies, and responded to large-scale events like the 2013 floods and the 2021 Marshall Fire.<\/p>\n

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Kevin Wells, the unit\u2019s dive instructor, has been volunteering with the unit off and on since about 1996. In those early years, he recalls, LEU had about 55 members and a waiting list for those wanting to join.<\/p>\n

Now, the unit has about 18 members, likely the smallest crew in quite a while, according to Anderson.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs departments become bigger, better funded, they have less of a need (for) some of the things we did in the past,\u201d Medhurst said.<\/p>\n

Still, the group stays busy with about 200 to 300 calls each year \u2014 often helping with \u201coddball things\u201d or traffic control during major incidents when police need all hands on deck, Medhurst said.<\/p>\n

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Longmont residents can often see LEU volunteers at the scenes of serious or fatal car crashes or SWAT calls \u2014 situations that require a lot of manpower.<\/p>\n

In February, LEU was called to help when a 2-year-old was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Erie.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur big vehicle is special; it has a light tower on it, and they needed that for the investigation as the sun went down,\u201d said Rich Pateman, a Longmont resident and LEU volunteer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a force multiplier, and to the taxpayers, a cost saving because we\u2019re a lot cheaper than a fully paid employee,\u201d Medhurst said.<\/p>\n

The group works closely with Longmont police, with whom they have an \u201cexcellent relationship,\u201d Medhurst said. Police have a substation in LEU\u2019s building at 663 17th Avenue, where they sometimes stop by to write reports.<\/p>\n

On New Year\u2019s Day, some LEU volunteers and a Longmont officer were eating pizza together when police were dispatched to a fatal Main Street crash.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all went running out the door together, and we worked the call together,\u201d Medhurst recalled.<\/p>\n

Read more Colorado weather: More than a foot of snow forecast for mountains<\/a><\/p>\n

Mike Butler, who led the Longmont Police Department from 1994 to 2020, said the public safety department called on LEU \u201cquite a bit\u201d for a variety of different situations during his tenure.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t tell you how many times I would be driving through the city or walking through an area and see LEU resources at work,\u201d Butler said. \u201cWe often commented within the organization how valuable they were and how much help they were.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a statement, Longmont spokesperson Rogelio Mares said LEU has been a partner to Longmont Public Safety for many years, \u201cproviding assistance on a wide range of public safety calls in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mares would not comment further on whether police found LEU\u2019s assistance useful or if they were concerned that LEU might not be around if it can\u2019t secure more funding.<\/p>\n

Financial trouble<\/h4>\n

In the early years, the unit raised funds for vehicles and its first \u201cjaws of life\u201d through spaghetti dinners and other fundraisers. Now, the unit operates on a budget of about $65,000 \u2014 most of which comes from a contract with the city of Longmont.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not enough to sustain the unit, which spends tens of thousands of dollars each year on vehicle and workers\u2019 compensation insurance, according to Anderson. In recent years, they\u2019ve spent more than $20,000 on their aging building, after a roof leak turned into a flood and they discovered HVAC problems.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur expenses have gone up, and not just insurance, but gas, vehicle cost, medical gear. Everything costs more,\u201d Medhurst said.<\/p>\n

The unit has asked the city for more money, but the city isn\u2019t \u201cin a place\u201d to give, Anderson said. The unit received just under $61,000 from the city last year, according to city records.<\/p>\n

The organization is looking for grants, but applying can be challenging, as the all-volunteer agency doesn\u2019t have a grant writer.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve watched our savings deplete, basically, over the last five years,\u201d Anderson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe try to be as frugal and as efficient as we can, but it\u2019s getting to the point where to cut back any further is getting rid of core capabilities,\u201d Medhurst said. \u201cDo we get rid of the dive team? Do we get rid of the medical team?\u201d<\/p>\n

The unit might not be able to keep the lights on in a year or 18 months unless something changes, Anderson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would kind of have to figure out another plan or close, which we don\u2019t want. We\u2019ve been here (nearly) 70 years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For many of LEU\u2019s members, the work they do is a passion, and they hope to continue.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re almost 70 years old, what are you doing on a\u00a0 SWAT call?\u201d Pateman, who is retired, recalls friends asking him. \u201cI was like, well, it\u2019s interesting work. It\u2019s valuable work. It needs to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Medhurst agrees.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have those moments where you\u2019re like, \u2018hey, we made a difference here.\u2019 You live for those moments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more 1 dead, 1 injured in Denver crash on northbound I-25<\/a><\/p>\n

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The Longmont Emergency Unit, founded in 1957, has struggled in recent years with finding enough funding to keep the lights on. Volunteers worry for the organization they love.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":479,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime-and-public-safety","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nA volunteer group has helped Longmont police during emergencies for decades. 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