A Hero Among Us

CRC’s values of Character, Responsibility and Commitment were demonstrated at the highest level recently by employee Toby Garza, CRC’s Production Technician in the greater Sacramento area. Toby was completing the monitoring of a CRC production route on a remote portion of our North Buttes area when he noticed someone closing a cattle gate in the distance. As he approached the scene, a man in his early 20s appeared disorientated while struggling to walk. Toby called his supervisor to explain the situation. Determining that the young man was not a threat, Toby offered him a ride to the closest CRC field office, while Meridian Fire Chief Jason Cooper was called for assistance. 

We quickly learned that the young man suffers from a brain injury, had wandered away from his home and that the Fire and Sheriff’s departments had been searching for him for two days. Grateful for CRC transporting the stranger to safety, Chief Cooper noted that if not for Toby’s actions to help this injured person, the situation could have ended direly.

CRC Operations Supervisor Alan Kirby stated, “I couldn’t be more proud of Toby for recognizing that the scene was unusual and took the time to investigate. His thoughtfulness aided the return of this disabled person back to his family. It exemplifies our CRC culture to the fullest and was an emotional day for all involved.”

In an ironic twist, Toby and Chief Cooper had met once before. When Toby was a senior in high school, he asked a firefighter to speak to his fellow students about the education requirements and duties associated with this emergency responder’s career. The fireman that spoke to his class was none other than Chief Cooper.