ALUMNI PROFILES
For him, there was never a question where he was going. “I figured I’d be graduating from high school, then I’d be going to college, and Daytona State would be the one. I didn’t consider anywhere else.”
EMT II, or Paramedic program as it came to be known. It was one of the first in the state of Florida, which in 1976, had implemented a statewide standard of Basic Life Support with EMTs, and Advanced Life Support with Paramedics. Since he was already an EMT, John decided to take the next step, enrolled again at Daytona State and became one of the first certified paramedics in Volusia County.
John graduated from Daytona State College with an Associate of Science in Nursing in December 2017, but his resumé contains one set of acronyms after another, all of them describing the various degrees and certifications he has earned, or the tests he has passed in his career. EMT, RN, LEO, ACLS, TEAS and NCLEX are some of them. You may not know what all of them mean, you just need to know it means you’re in good hands if John Salmon is with you in a tight spot.
While still a teenager, John became a volunteer firefighter with Volusia County, the beginning of his career as a first responder. In that role, he was often involved in rescue calls and found himself fascinated with the medical side of these emergencies. That led him to look into Daytona State’s EMT program and begin a relationship with the College that has now spanned almost five decades.
John remained with Beacon Ambulance for many years and often trained the company’s paramedics in his role as a supervisor. He was also hired by the City of Edgewater as a reserve police officer, prompting a return to Daytona State and its Law Enforcement Academy, but he realized that was not where his true interests were. “I liked EMS more than I liked law enforcement,” John admitted.
To say John has followed a winding road to get where he is today would be accurate, but in a geographical sense, it wasn’t a long one.
After earning his certification as an EMT, John began working full-time for Beacon Ambulance, a private EMS provider under contract with Volusia County. It wasn’t long after, that Daytona State began offering an
Nevertheless, John eventually left both behind as he and his wife, Mary, launched their own successful business ventures in the Daytona Beach area, and all of his licenses expired. But in 2013, he got the itch again,
It’s something no one really wants to think about. You’re driving home from work, or returning from a late-night dinner. Maybe you’re in a remote location, or maybe it’s a busy city street. Suddenly, with little or no warning, you’re in an accident, and it’s a bad one. Your life is now in someone else’s hands, and you can only hope it’s someone like John Salmon.
John is a Daytona Beach native and a 1974 graduate of Mainland High School, right across the street from what, at the time, was known as Daytona Beach Community College.
38 | DAYTONA STATE MAGAZINE • FALL/WINTER 2019
Photo by Alicia Lynn Gautreaux
