Our Humble Beginning

Southside Virginia Emergency Crew has come a long way throughout its history. Our story begins in 1945 when an article appeared in the February 1945, issue of The Reader’s Digest concerning the activities of the Roanoke Life Saving Crew, organized and directed by its Captain, Julian S. Wise. The Petersburg Junior Chamber of Commerce reviewed this article during a meeting on April 5, 1945. W. Roy Smith, President of the Jaycees that year, appointed a committee to visit the Roanoke operation and to report their findings at the next Jaycee meeting. In a resolution, passed unanimously, the Jaycees promised sponsorship of such an organization. The original committee, augmented by K. E Morris, invited the mayors of Petersburg, Colonial Heights, and Ettrick, along with potential first aid instructors, presidents of local civic organizations, and area medical personnel, to attend an organization meeting at the Petersburg YMCA on May 18, 1945. At this meeting, the crew was formed and the name, SOUTHSIDE VIRGINIA EMERGENCY CREW, was adopted.

Meet Our Team

SVEC is proud and fortunate to have so many talented members on our team. Our everyday heroes hail from all walks of life and exhibit a strong passion for their craft. We’d like to introduce you to our members responsible for the continued forward movement of our organization.

Director of Operations:
Jennifer Lewis

Jennifer Lewis serves as the Director of Operations for Southside Virginia Emergency Crew. Lewis has held several positions within the organization to include her most recent role as Deputy Director of Operations. Lewis has been very instrumental in structuring the employee onboarding process and creating the Scheduling Coordinator role allowing for efficiency in employee scheduling, shift coverage using demand analysis, and shift cross coverage.

Deputy Director of Operations:
Ronnie Catron

Ronnie Catron serves as the Deputy Director of Operations. Catron has previously served as D-Shift Captain, Training Captain, and Logistics Officer. Catron also chairs the Quality Management Committee as well as the New Ambulance Committee.

Today

Today, Southside Virginia Emergency Crew is located in our station at 425 Graham Road Petersburg, Virginia. SVEC is the primary provider of Emergency Medical Services to the City of Petersburg, Virginia. We currently operate six Ford F-450 ambulances, with one 2022 Ford F-450 Road Rescue Gas Unit on order. We run two 24 hour trucks and one 12 hour truck for the entire city and its surrounding areas (upon mutual aide request).