Becca Mendez grew up watching her family members work as first responders. “My dad was a firefighter and then my oldest brother is a cop, and my other brother was military police,” she said. “Being a first responder is just something I’ve grown up around.”
Now, as an EMT (and soon-to-be paramedic), Mendez is following in her family’s footsteps.
Mendez graduated from Dublin in 2011 and went to school to be a dental assistant. “It was something I had never thought of,” she said. “I saw an ad in the newspaper about it with a school in Stephenville, so I just did it and I loved it.”
That school was the Stephenville Dental Career Center. To pay for her education, Mendez worked nights at the Rock House in Stephenville, a group home for people with special needs. She had four clients she took care of, and continued to work with them even after she graduated.
When she finished school, Mendez began working at Accel Health as a dental assistant. She moved between the Brownwood, DeLeon and Stephenville clinics. “My duties were just assisting the dentists cleaning operatories, getting patients checked in, taking vitals and doing Xrays,” she said.
Mendez loved working at Accel Health because it was a community clinic. “It was more for lower income people and I love just being able to help them,” she said. “If it wasn’t for Excel health, they would not have had the resources to see a dentist/ doctor.”
Mendez worked at Accel Health for three years. Then moved to Sweetwater to work as an Account Specialist at We s t e r n Finance in Abilene for two years. Then in 2020, she went to school to be an EMT at Texas State Technical College in Brownwood. The course took six months, and Mendez did it during COVID, which posed a challenge. When she finished her training, Mendez started as an EMT in Brownwood.
Her work schedule is two days on and four days off. The call volume depends on the day; some days there are only three or four calls — other days keep the EMS constantly busy. The station has sleeping areas where Mendez and her coworkers can take naps in between calls.
The work can be exhausting. “It’s something that you have to definitely have a passion for because it’s mentally hard, it’s physically hard, and we see people on their worst days,” she said. “You have to take those days off, which some of us don’t like. I personally work a lot of overtime. But it’s important to take at least two days off to debrief. Just sit there and relax. Spend time with family. I travel back to Dublin a lot to be with my nephews in all their sporting events and school events. That’s my debriefing is to go back and be with my nephews.”
Mendez’ favorite part of her work is being able to be there for people when they’re at their most vulnerable. “Some of them apologize for calling, but we tell them, ‘That’s what we’re here for. We love our jobs. We have a passion for it. We want to help you.’” Mendez will finish earning her paramedic certifications within the next year. “I plan on staying here in Brownwood as a paramedic for at least five years, and then I want to go to be a critical care paramedic,” she said. “I will be trained to take care of the even more critical patients.”
She bought a house in Brownwood, and plans to continue living there.
When Mendez has time off from her job as an EMT, she serves on the Lake Brownwood Bridge Volunteer Fire Department, which keeps her busy. “We’re right there on the lake, so we cover the state park and a big portion of Lake Brownwood,” she said.
Although it takes a lot of her time, Mendez loves working with the fire department. “I grew up on the fire truck with my dad,” she said. “It’s always been home to me.” “The department I serve on has an amazing group of men and women that just have a passion to serve our community!”
When she has the time, Mendez runs a side business where she sells crafts such as wreaths, keychains and home decor. She enjoys spending time with her family; her parents Joe and Tina Mendez still live in Dublin, as does two of her nephews.
“My family has definitely been there and has pushed me to be where I am today,” she said. “There were multiple times in this career that I’ve wanted to give up and they just keep me going. Especially my two nephews.
Mendez’ offers the following advice to Dublin graduates. “Follow your dreams and don’t let anyone or anything hold you back,” she said.
Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@dublincitizen.com.