Brooks parlays ambulance past into director of Ellsworth service

• Pete Brooks

Pete Brooks

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Brooks parlays ambulance past into directorship

By Bill Kirk

Pete Brooks’ wide range of interests tends to make him versatile.

For example, Brooks was studying commercial art in college when he got an opportunity to photograph the Florida Everglades, so he quit before finishing the two-year program (“photography was huge,” he explained.)

Then there’s his background in vehicle mechanics, which has complemented his main career pursuit—being a member of ambulance services. When he saw six ambulance trucks parked on the lot at Osseo Ford, he inquired whether the business needed a mechanic to repair them and landed a job.

Now, as the new director of the Ellsworth Ambulance Service, Brooks wouldn’t discount the possibility of doing some mechanical repairs to the local service’s two rigs. The successor to former Director Bill Brookshaw and the more recent interim director Dan Morth said Thursday he’d be willing to use those skills in-house.

“We have to look at where we can keep costs down,” Brooks said, noting the service operates here with two Fords, the older of which may be replaced in the not-too-distant future.

Read more in the print version of the Herald Dec. 21.

Tags: lifestyle, health, government