JULY 3, 2015, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A7
Keizer mom pulls double duty as ICU nurse, volunteer fi refi ghter
By Jenenne Aguilar
Special to Keizertimes
Keizer native Amber But-
ler, 38, has dedicated her
life to helping others. It’s in
her blood—her father and
grandfather were both fi re-
fi ghters.
“It was a natural thing for
me to grow into with my
family history,” said Butler.
Amber became a volun-
teer fi refi ghter with Keizer
Fire District in 1995, one
year after she graduated from
high school. That same year
she met her now husband,
Capt. Brian Butler, a career
fi refi ghter also with Keizer
Fire.
“I had to make a decision
for my career,” said Amber.
“I chose to become a nurse
because it would be easier to
have a nurse-paramedic rela-
tionship. Plus, I wanted to be
a mom too.”
Butler worked full-time
for more than seven years
at Salem Hospital, starting
in the pharmacy and then
transferring to the ER for six
years.
Amber then started nurs-
ing classes and graduated in
2003 from the Chemeketa
Community College nursing
program. She became a nurse
in the hospital’s Intensive
Care Unit.
“I most often interact
with families because the
patients are usually sedated
or can’t interact due to their
medical condition,” said But-
ler. “My goal is to bring the
family’s anxiety down to a
manageable level, help them
understand what’s going on,
and provide excellent care.”
Amber has also worked
with the hospital’s Rapid Re-
sponse Team for the past nine
years, responding to patient
emergencies, such as chest
pain or breathing problems.
Balancing a nursing career
with family life poses a week-
ly challenge, with a daughter
and son, ages 8 and 6.
She works two, 12-hour
shifts each week as a nurse—
with her husband away at
the fi re station another two
to three days. That leaves two
days for family time.
“I still fi ll in with Keizer
Fire where it works for my
family’s schedule. It’s always
cram-packed,” said Butler.
Amber
Butler in
her turnout
gear as a
volunteer
with Keizer
Fire District.
Submitted
“My family always comes
fi rst. But I have a passion to
volunteer and be there for
the community.”
She also has discovered
another passion.
“Ten years ago, I heard
about a ridiculous fi refi ghter
challenge where you climb
69 fl ights of stairs wearing 60
pounds of gear. At the time
I thought you’re out of your
mind,” said Butler.
In 2011, Amber partici-
pated for her fi rst time in the
Scott Firefi ghter Stairclimb
at the Columbia Center in
downtown Seattle—a fun-
draiser for the Leukemia &
Lymphoma Society.
A close friend of hers died
from leukemia and a col-
league was diagnosed with
multiple myeloma, providing
further inspiration.
Amber made it to the top
in 32 minutes and 19 sec-
onds.
“The challenge is unbe-
lievable. You feel worn out
and exhausted at the top. But
it’s less than 35 minutes of
feeling that way,” said Butler.
“Those going through treat-
ment feel that way daily.”
This spring, she raised
nearly $7,000 for the
event—topping her 2014
effort by more than $2,000.
Some 1,900 fi refi ghters from
around the world participat-
ed and altogether raised $2.2
million. The event’s motto:
Climb. Conquer. Cure.
“It’s beautiful to raise
money for a great organi-
zation. It goes straight to
blood-cancer research and
patient services,” said Butler.
Amber revealed what mat-
ters to her most—“I want to
be a positive role model for
my kids—plus provide a pos-
itive experience for patients
and their families at the hos-
pital or those at a fi re scene,”
said Butler.
“My kids know mommy
does these things because it
makes me feel happy to help
others—and hopefully they
see value for why I do it.”
Jenenne Aguilar is the trauma
program nurse manager at Sa-
lem Hospital, a part of Salem
Health. Find more information
at salemhealth.org.
traffi c
court
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Brittney Michelle
Ortiz, $150.
Vargas-
FAILURE TO OBEY
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Grace Nobuko Oneha, failure
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license, $40. Trent Robert
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failure to dim headlights, $235.
Library hosts
summer stories
The Keizer Community
Library Story Time has started.
It’s being held at the library,
located in the Keizer Heritage
Center at 980 Chemawa Road
NE and runs from 11 a.m. to
noon on Thursdays.
It’s oriented to readers 7 years
old or younger and includes
stories and activities. You do
not have to be a library patron
to participate. Children must be
accompanied by an adult.
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