Sussex Co. EMS member honored as “First Responder Who Makes A Difference”

DAGSBORO, Del. – 47 ABC is teaming up with four Tire Pro locations to honor first responders each month. Kalina Petkova with Sussex County EMS is our First Responder Who Makes A Difference for September. Kalina is a full time paramedic originally from Bulgaria. We’re told she’s a mother of a 2-year-old girl and her fiance is also a parademic. Coworkers say she worked hard to get her degree in paramedicine and is incredibly driven, dedicated, and tenacious.

Kalina tells us it means the world to her to be recognized for her efforts to save lives.

“When I was in high school I just wanted to go to medical school and be a doctor but then things change in life so I moved here so I feel like this is the closest that you can do to be a doctor because you get to do a lot of cool things and help people all the time.”

She also adds, “Follow your dreams because everything is possible with hard work.”

Kalina was so determined to be a paramedic that she pursued English as a second language to allow her to graduate with her degree in paramedicine.

The four Tire Pro locations include Burnett White Tire Pros in Salisbury, Nock’s Tire Pros in Pocomoke, Cook’s Tire Pros in Harrington, and In & Out Tire Pros in Millsboro. The four Tire Pro locations gave her a gift basket filled with goodies like a car wash gift card, Tire Pro gift cards, a roadside repair kit, and much more. Now she’s entered into a drawing to win a grand prize this December of a new set of tires valued at $1000.