SEIU 521 Steward Cathy Stanley is a local hero in Watsonville, CA. Earlier this month, the Animal Control Officer from Monterey County came across a car accident; she took action that was above-and-beyond the call-of-duty, according to the local Sheriff’s Department.
Some may recall several years ago, Monterey County managers had attacked Cathy for standing up for safer working conditions. In 2014, an arbitrator concluded that Cathy had been wrongly disciplined and ordered that she be reinstated to her Animal Control Officer position.
Lucky for the community because on April 13, while on the job, Cathy encountered an accident and quickly took control of the scene, according to Deputy Phillip Hickenbottom.
“When ACO Stanley arrived at the scene, the father of the boy was running around in shock and panic with the limp body of his son in his arms. Blood was squirting out of a gash in the boy’s neck,” the deputy reported.
Cathy administered CPR on the boy until paramedics arrived. She then directed traffic around the accident. Once emergency responders arrived, Cathy calmed the father and helped him contact his family. Despite her best efforts, the child did not survive.
Cathy’s dedication and heroics were recognized during a Monterey County Board of Supervisors meeting this month.
SEIU members are on the front lines every day and though often their work goes unnoticed, these types of heroics are more common than most people realize.
“Even though I did what I did that day, it’s more important for people to understand that public workers do this kind of work every day. I did it once,” said Cathy. “They are the ones who deserve the praise.”
Cathy Stanley is a great SEIU Steward, Local Hero, and union leader who puts her Community First.
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