ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — A lifeline for many people on the Treasure Coast is getting an extra boost.
The Port St. Lucie Volunteer Ambulance Service survives on donations, but COVID-19 has caused them to plummet.
The community is responding but more help is still needed.
The St. Lucie County Fire District and the fire board on Friday donated an ambulance to the volunteer service, providing the chance for it to be more available for patients and help more people.
The Port St. Lucie Volunteer Ambulance Service has been in danger of closing for the past year.
It's been up and running for 42 years, fueled by volunteers that help take patients to the hospital and doctor's appointments free of charge.
"The service we provide for the community, it's amazing," said Josh Kinnison, who works with the service.
It runs solely on donations, but the service is running out of money.
"If we have to close, they lose their transportation," said Port St. Lucie Volunteer Ambulance Service Chief Tina Vasquez. "We won't have to worry so much about another patient on hold while we wait for another transport to end."
The non-emergency transport service was on the verge of closing its doors for good a few weeks ago until a generous donation helped keep it alive.
"In the next six months, we are still very much in need of assistance," Vasquez said.
The reality is that the ambulance service still needs more donations to keep serving this community.
"It breaks my heart. It makes it real because I'm going to have to say goodbye to my crew and to the patients, and that's just something I'm not ready to do," Vasquez said.
