{"id":65053,"date":"2026-04-21T11:45:33","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T15:45:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/?p=65053"},"modified":"2026-04-21T16:37:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T20:37:59","slug":"polk-county-fire-rescue-honors-retired-deputy-with-first-ever-community-hero-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/2026\/04\/21\/polk-county-fire-rescue-honors-retired-deputy-with-first-ever-community-hero-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Polk County Fire Rescue Honors Retired Deputy with First Ever Community Hero Award"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-dominant-color=\"8e807e\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #8e807e;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"590\" height=\"310\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px\" src=\"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672680230_1281560000827854_5054142440257034482_n.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-65054 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672680230_1281560000827854_5054142440257034482_n.webp 590w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672680230_1281560000827854_5054142440257034482_n-300x158.webp 300w\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Retired Polk County Sheriff\u2019s Office Master Deputy Mark Trexler received Polk County Fire Rescue\u2019s (PCFR) first-ever Community Hero Award for his quick actions in getting help for an ambulance crew injured in a crash. Firefighter\/Paramedic John Parris and Firefighter\/EMT Eryn Orduna were transporting a patient when they were involved in a two-vehicle crash on Dec. 8, 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img data-dominant-color=\"706663\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #706663;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"538\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672683320_1281560084161179_7348545192737440950_n-1024x538.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-65055 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672683320_1281560084161179_7348545192737440950_n-1024x538.webp 1024w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672683320_1281560084161179_7348545192737440950_n-300x158.webp 300w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672683320_1281560084161179_7348545192737440950_n-768x403.webp 768w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672683320_1281560084161179_7348545192737440950_n.webp 1200w\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Parris and Orduna were injured in the crash, and Parris was taken to a local hospital. The patient and the other vehicle\u2019s driver were also taken to the hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Trexler, who drove up on the scene, grabbed the ambulance\u2019s radio and described the scene to dispatchers who immediately got help on the way. Polk County Fire Chief Shawn Smith said Trexler\u2019s quick, calm, and professional actions were vital in getting everyone involved in the crash the care they needed quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embedpress-embedpress aligncenter\" data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\" data-embed-type=\"Youtube\"><div class=\"gutenberg-block-wraper  \"><div class=\"position-right-wraper ep-embed-content-wraper   \" style=\"position:relative;display:inline-block\"><div class=\"ose-youtube ose-uid-62a64c88c25f73400ed56fe72e162127 ose-embedpress-responsive\" style=\"width:600px; height:340px; max-height:340px; max-width:100%; display:inline-block;\" data-embed-type=\"Youtube\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" allowFullScreen=\"true\" title=\"Mark Trexler Community Hero Award\" width=\"600\" height=\"340\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/nu8WXUAGX_Y?feature=oembed&#038;color=red&#038;rel=1&#038;controls=2&#038;start=true&#038;end=true&#038;fs=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;autoplay=0&#038;mute=1&#038;modestbranding=0&#038;cc_load_policy=0&#038;playsinline=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; encrypted-media;accelerometer;autoplay;clipboard-write;gyroscope;picture-in-picture clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen style=\"width:600px;height:340px;max-width:100%;\"><\/iframe><\/div><\/div><\/div><style>\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .ose-embedpress-responsive{\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        max-height: 340px!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] iframe{\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        max-height: 340px!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .embedpress-yt-subscribe iframe{\n                        height: 100%!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .ose-youtube > iframe{\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                        max-width: 100%!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .ose-youtube{\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .ose-giphy img{\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .ose-google-docs img{\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                    }\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .ose-embedpress-responsive.ose-google-photos{\n                        height: 100% !important;\n                        max-height: 100% !important;\n                    }\n\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .embera-embed-responsive-provider-gettyimages,\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .embera-embed-responsive-provider-gettyimages iframe,\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] .getty{\n                        width: 600px!important;\n                        height: 340px!important;\n                        max-height: 340px!important;\n                        max-width: 100%!important;\n                    }\n                    <\/style><style>\n                    [data-source-id=\"source-7138cf69-b201-4a68-ba20-b0a84a221883\"] img.watermark{\n                        display: none;\n                    }\n                    \n                    <\/style><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cRetired Master Deputy Trexler exemplifies the best of Polk County, especially in a situation as difficult as the accident he came across on Dec. 8. His training and years of experience with PCSO were a key factor in providing the best possible response in getting the injured parties help,\u201d Chief Smith said. \u201cI am forever grateful for his quick response and proud to award him the first-ever PCFR Community Hero Award.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img data-dominant-color=\"6b6160\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #6b6160;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"538\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672684992_1281560087494512_7289740542471161350_n-1024x538.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-65056 not-transparent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672684992_1281560087494512_7289740542471161350_n-1024x538.webp 1024w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672684992_1281560087494512_7289740542471161350_n-300x158.webp 300w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672684992_1281560087494512_7289740542471161350_n-768x403.webp 768w, https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/672684992_1281560087494512_7289740542471161350_n.webp 1200w\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Smith said the Community Hero Award was established to honor community members who go above and beyond in an emergency situation. Individuals are eligible for the award for demonstrating exceptional courage, initiative, and selfless action that significantly impacts the safety, well-being, or lives of others within Polk County.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Retired Polk County Sheriff\u2019s Office Master Deputy Mark Trexler received Polk County Fire Rescue\u2019s (PCFR) first-ever Community Hero Award for his quick actions in getting help for an ambulance crew&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":65054,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvaTAud3AuY29tXC9sYWtlbGFuZGdhemV0dGUuaW5mb1wvbmV3c1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyNlwvMDRcLzY3MjY4MDIzMF8xMjgxNTYwMDAwODI3ODU0XzUwNTQxNDI0NDAyNTcwMzQ0ODJfbi53ZWJwP2ZpdD01OTAlMkMzMTAmc3NsPTEiLCJ0eHQiOiJQb2xrIENvdW50eSBGaXJlIFJlc2N1ZSBIb25vcnMgUmV0aXJlZCBEZXB1dHkgd2l0aCBGaXJzdCBFdmVyIENvbW11bml0eSBIZXJvIEF3YXJkIiwidGVtcGxhdGUiOiJkb2lzIiwiZm9udCI6IiIsImJsb2dfaWQiOjE2MzA0MDY2MX0.qJRbIil7-D7FoNtDQNZNYZsNhIMZvNlOOxrw-_EpYBwMQ"},"version":2,"media_source":"sig","attached_media":[{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/jetpack.com\/redirect\/?source=sigenerate&query=t%3DeyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvbGFrZWxhbmRnYXpldHRlLmluZm9cL25ld3NcL3dwLWNvbnRlbnRcL3VwbG9hZHNcLzIwMjZcLzA0XC82NzI2ODAyMzBfMTI4MTU2MDAwMDgyNzg1NF81MDU0MTQyNDQwMjU3MDM0NDgyX24ud2VicCIsInR4dCI6IlBvbGsgQ291bnR5IEZpcmUgUmVzY3VlIEhvbm9ycyBSZXRpcmVkIERlcHV0eSB3aXRoIEZpcnN0IEV2ZXIgQ29tbXVuaXR5IEhlcm8gQXdhcmQiLCJ0ZW1wbGF0ZSI6ImRvaXMiLCJmb250IjoiIiwiYmxvZ19pZCI6MTYzMDQwNjYxfQ.bzlmY3MF0wn46S7Qny3V_itALQaNym4vhMJHqKYIjeQMQ","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[12,14],"tags":[14423],"class_list":["post-65053","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","category-news","tag-polk-county-fire-rescue-honors-retired-deputy-with-first-ever-community-hero-award"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65053","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65053"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65053\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65076,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65053\/revisions\/65076"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/65054"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65053"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=65053"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=65053"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}