Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 14, 1993 TAG: 9303120138
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: JOANNE M. ANDERSON SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
THE LITTLEST RESCUER
KEVIN Brown saw the Southwest Virginia Mountain Rescue Group's sign on a brick building in Blacksburg last July and decided he wanted to join.He had experience in search and rescue, first aid and technical climbing.
The group had no age or height restrictions, so the new 13-year-old became a COQ (Call-Out Qualified) rescuer.
He is its youngest member by about seven years.
"Kevin's participation was encouraged," said the group's faculty adviser, John Punches. "Most of our members are short term, joining during college and leaving the area after graduation from Virginia Tech, so I see Kevin as a longtime asset to the organization."
The rescue group, which includes mostly college students and some adults, meets weekly for business and training sessions. It is affiliated with the Appalachian Search and Rescue Conference.
Punches, who also is training coordinator, says the 5-foot, 90-something-pound youth follows instructions accurately, works diligently and learns eagerly.
"If he can't keep up with an exercise, it's a factor of size, not [lack of] effort," Punches said.
Punches likes to tell about a day he was hiking on Brush Mountain and ran into Kevin and a friend on a 20-mile mountain bike adventure. The next day, in a steady downpour, Kevin participated in a six-hour rescue training exercise outdoors.
"After that long bike ride the previous day and in all the wet and cold, Kevin displayed no signs of fatigue. A real show of the stamina of youth, I'd say, but also an indication of the strength of Kevin's determination," Punches said.
Kevin Brown comes from Maine, where his family lived before moving to Blacksburg last summer.
The rescue training coordinator for the Dirigo Search and Rescue Group was on the youngster's paper route there, so he asked about membership.
"At first," said Kevin, a Blacksburg Middle School pupil, "they just used me as a guinea pig, practicing head stabilization, bandages and packaging me for transport. I paid attention and learned a lot as the pretend victim. After the first year, they let me participate in the exercises."
Kevin also has completed the first aid merit badge in Boy Scouts. And it is through the Scouts that he will be able to advance in the rescue group from COQ to FTM (Field Team Member).
Boy Scouts may complete a CPR program at any age; no one can take Red Cross CPR course until age 16.
There seem to be no other limitations to inhibit Kevin's volunteer service with the Southwest Virginia Mountain Rescue Group. In just five months, he has completed training sessions in wilderness survival, personal equipment, exposure, communications, land navigation, mission operations and command systems, search skills and techniques, litter handling and legal aspects of search and rescue.
He is especially strong in rappeling, land navigation, knots and rigging.
When a call is received, Kevin is to report to headquarters in the brick building downtown and be assigned a prepared pack with the 10 essentials. He rattles them off as he might recite a Social Security number: food, water, knife, compass, whistle, two sources of fire, two sources of light, shelter, extra clothing and first aid kit.
From there he would go with other members to the command post of a search and rescue mission anywhere in the state.
Kevin's parents, Greg and Jan Brown, are enthusiastic about their son's achievements.
"At first," said Jan Brown, "I was a little concerned about him being so much younger than the others on weekend training or overnight calls. But his maturity and genuine interest have won my confidence."
His dad says Kevin's interest in rescue and climbing is pretty much self-generated.
"Boy Scouts certainly has had a positive impact and I encouraged his participation there, having been an Eagle Scout in my youth. But he's pursued most of it on his own and we're proud of him."
In Maine a couple years ago, Kevin signed up for a rock-climbing class sponsored by the Maine Bound organization, which is patterned after Outward Bound.
After two sessions, Kevin was hooked on climbing. Upon moving to Blacksburg, the seventh-grader designed and built a climbing wall complete with bolted-on rocks and chains that allow the wall to be adjusted to various angles.
Kevin is afraid of heights, but he has no fear of climbing or looking down. "With proper set-up, equipment and training, it's as safe as any sport," he said.