MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — In Milledgeville, one Grady EMS paramedic has more than three decades of experience under his belt.
Foster Hurt said, "Really in my heart and mind, I want to stay, but really, I think it's best to do it now, at this time."
Foster Hurt joined the Grady EMS Baldwin County family in 1978, as Baldwin County's first Black EMT, although he doesn't talk much about that role in history.
Hurt said, "I didn't really look at it like that, I just looked at it to do well."
He started working in his early 20s, and has worked within ambulance services ever since.
One of his friends, David Carver, says he never left Baldwin County because he loves his county.
Carver said, "He's been here through thick and thin. He loves this county, hasn't been anywhere else!"
Out of all the decades, he remembers one call that was the scariest. The day he arrived at a scene to help construction workers get out from underneath a fallen pipe.
"We got there. They got two of the guys out and they were trying to get the third guy out. I went into the ditch to get them out, then it collapsed on me and dirt covered me all the way up until my neck," said Hurt. "It took them about two minutes or so for them to get me out."
Looking back though, he says he has no regrets.
Hurt also said, "I love what I do. I loved it from the first day up until my last day."
Even though Hurt is closing this chapter, he will still be involved in the community as a deputy coroner.
Hurt also helps Milledgeville citizens fill out their taxes on the side. He plans to stay busy and active so he can continue supporting his family and community.