TOVSAR

Top of Virginia Search and Rescue

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PRESS RELEASE

Eight TOVSAR members complete VDEM Training

Winchester, VA December 8, 2002 - Top of Virginia Search and Rescue (TOVSAR) graduated eight members from three different classes conducted by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management Search and Rescue Training Program recently conducted at the Northern VA 4-H Center in Front Royal.  All courses were 40 hours long and were conducted over two weekends beginning on Friday night and concluding on Sunday afternoon.  

Completing the first course in Field Team Member (FTM) were:  Dick Bittner of Winchester , Brian Atkins of Morgantown , WV and Lisa Christ of New Market. This course included the fundamentals of Search and Rescue.  

Rick Christ, father of Lisa Christ completed the Field Team Leader (FTL) course.  This is an in the field management course which includes search tactics, handling in field emergencies, uses of technical rescue equipment and performing specialized evacuations.  

Tana Jean Sexton of Strasburg completed the Field Team Signcutting (FTS) course which teaches the principles of clue awareness, clue and track finding identifying and interpreting sign.  

Three members of TOVSAR completed the Managing Land Search Operations Course (MLSO):  Jim Coots of Gore, Wayne Lee of Shawnee Land and Bill Penfield of Cross Junction. 

In addition, two other members, Pam and Mike Sweeney of Woodstock served as the all-important “missing persons” for the mock search conducted on Saturday night, Dec. 7.

These members of TOVSAR were joined in their training by over fifty other professional volunteers from throughout Virginia including Sheriff’s deputies, fire and rescue personnel, dog handlers and volunteers from other search and rescue groups such as Shenandoah Mountain Rescue Group of Vienna, Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group of Charlottesville, Blue and Gray Search Dogs of Harrisonburg, K-9 Alert Search and Rescue of Chesterfield, Civil Air Patrol, Virginia Wing, and Rockingham/Augusta Search and Rescue, Bridgewater.

TOVSAR is a ground search and rescue group dedicated to saving lives through ground search and rescue operations in wilderness and rural situations.  TOVSAR serves Clark, Frederick Shenandoah and Warren counties and the City of Winchester and the adjacent counties of West Virginia .  For more information, contact Bill Penfield at (540) 888-3188 or email wfpenfield@earthlink.net.  

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