We have always come together when times have gotten tough. It is how we cope, especially when activities that we commonly enjoy are cancelled. It’s frustrating to be told to social-distance and isolate when the most effective way to resist panic is, after all, the comfort of togetherness. But as days of social distancing turns into weeks and even months, we realize that the spirit of coming together has nothing to do with standing face to face with one another. It’s about helping each other, especially those impacted by the crisis and those on the frontline, in whatever way we can.
This is exactly what Annelie Van der Heyden learned after thieves broke into her car and made off with all her work gear: two uniforms, boots, masks, stethoscope, helmet, and everything else she needed to do her job. Annelie is a paramedic in Vancouver, BC, and she hasn’t been able to work because she no longer had her gear. Thankfully, residents of a local shelter found her bag and brought it into a local fire hall, where firemen cleaned and disinfected everything before returning them to Annelie.
When we first learned about the theft in the news in late March. It made sense, with businesses shutting down in the city, it’s going to affect crime levels. But we’d think that when the thieves saw Annelie’s gear and not realize or respect the importance of her role as a paramedic in times like this, it is definitely heartbreaking.
We specialize in dash cams and vehicle safety, and we knew the dash cam would be perfect in protecting Annelie and her family. In partnership with Thinkware, we contacted her and surprised her with a Thinkware FA200 dash cam!
See what Annelie has to say about the incident, what she's doing now, the outpour of support from the community, what she’s hoping to capture with her new dash cam, and how dash cams can help paramedics and other frontline workers.