Michael Kennedy, Certified RN III, ICU<\/p>\n
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Michael Kennedy, Certified RN III, ICU. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n
Serving as administrator on duty (AOD) on Aug. 3, Michael Kennedy remembers how quickly everything unfolded. Within 45 minutes, the emergency department was caring for 14 Level 1 trauma patients.<\/p>\n
Years later, what stays with him is not the pace of the response, but the people.<\/p>\n
It was a beautiful thing to see everyone do exactly what they were trained to do for so long, and they just got to work. It was a beautiful thing to see other professionals who were trained for the worst things imaginable do really good things together,” he said.April Senclair, Certified RN III, ICU![\"April](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1785804864_966_df59a485-867b-455b-9b0a-e8d95b087850-3.jpg\")
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April Senclair, Certified RN III, ICU. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n
April was attending a coworker’s baby shower when emergency alerts began appearing on her phone: mass casualty incident, multiple Level 1 traumas.<\/p>\n
“I realized that, day-to-day in my work, these were not just patients. This was my community that was affected,” she said.<\/p>\n
The fear and heartbreak she felt came from knowing the people in those hospital rooms were more than patients. They were mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, friends, neighbors, and loved ones. They were members of her community. They were El Pasoans.<\/p>\n
April recalled thinking to herself, <\/p>\n
Everyone in this room means something to someone.Silvia Ogaz, Supervisor, Environmental Services![\"Silvia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1785804865_272_f3fbd903-c671-42e8-a574-8a164541ec00-4.jpg\")
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Silvia Ogaz, Supervisor, Environmental Services. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n
Silvia was walking through the hospital when she received the call. At first, she thought she had misunderstood.<\/p>\n
Within moments, she began moving from floor to floor, calling members of her Environmental Services team and asking them to report to UMC’s Emergency Department.<\/p>\n
Seven years later, what remains within Silvia is the strength she saw in the people around her and the strength she discovered within herself.<\/p>\n
Before, I thought I was a weak person, but that day, I saw myself and my coworkers being so, so strong.Juan Torres, Linen Associate, Laundry Services![\"Juan](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1785804865_292_1c8ac0e4-ec65-4516-949b-4bc4625167f6-5.jpg\")
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Juan Torres, Linen Associate, Laundry Services. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n
Juan was working in Laundry Services when he received a call from Silvia Ogaz. Nurses and physicians were on their way in, and the emergency department needed scrubs, blankets, and towels.<\/p>\n
Juan was deeply affected by the tragedy and shared that it took months before he felt comfortable going into a Walmart again. Like many throughout El Paso, he carried the impact of Aug. 3 long after that day had passed. Still, he continued coming in to work each day alongside his team, a reminder of the many ways people across our community continued showing up for one another in the days, months, and years that followed.<\/p>\n
I speak about my department, but heroes could be found throughout the hospital.<\/p>\n
RECOMMENDED: Star on the Mountain to flash 23 times to honor victims of Aug. 3 shooting<\/a><\/p>\n Jaime Vasquez, Paramedic, Emergency Department Jaime Vasquez, Paramedic, Emergency Department. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n In 2019, Jaime worked as a paramedic for both the fire department and UMC. On Aug. 3, he was assigned to a firetruck when updates about an active shooter began coming across the radio.<\/p>\n Although he was not scheduled to work at UMC that day, Jaime felt compelled to go.<\/p>\n Jaime found a renewed sense of purpose, reinforcing not only why he chose a career as a first responder, but where he felt he was meant to serve.<\/p>\n That realization ultimately led him to join UMC full-time.<\/p>\n I need to stay here; this is where I need to be.Nancy McGrail, Admin. Director, Service Excellence, Patient Experience Nancy McGrail, Admin. Director, Service Excellence, Patient Experience. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n Nancy was serving as director of UMC’s Emergency Department on Aug. 3 when she received a phone call at home from paramedic Jaime Vasquez, who was working with the El Paso Fire Department that day.<\/p>\n Nancy said this year was the first since 2019 that she felt a sense of peace returning to the trauma bays. Today, Nancy works in UMC\u2019s Patient Experience Department, where she continues to follow through day after day, putting patients above all else.<\/p>\n \u201cWe got in there and did not give up,\u201d Nancy said. \u201cYou can’t give up in those situations. You have to follow through.\u201d<\/p>\n Though she was not born and raised in El Paso, the compassion and resilience she witnessed in the aftermath of Aug. 3 changed the way she saw the city.<\/p>\n Alejandra Carzoli, Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Alejandra Carzoli, Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner. Credit: UMC El Paso<\/p>\n On Aug. 3, Alejandra Carzoli was working as a charge nurse in UMC’s Emergency Department. She recalls a man trying to open the doors of the ambulance bay that Saturday morning. He was an on-duty officer who had driven a patient from the shooting to the hospital.<\/p>\n The experience remained with her long after the immediate crisis had passed and ultimately solidified her decision to pursue a career in mental health, leading her to return to school just one year later.<\/p>\n “After Aug. 3, I realized there’s a lot of aftermath when people live through something so traumatic. That’s what made me make the final decision that I wanted to work with people who have PTSD or underlying mental health problems,” she said.<\/p>\n RECOMMENDED: El Paso marks seventh anniversary of Aug. 3 mass shooting at Ascarate Park Healing Garden<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Jaime](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1785804865_113_fe7481a4-d7fd-4662-b376-393ca857b47a-6.jpg\")
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