Instead of retreating to the South Side of Chicago when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Hector Salazar stayed on Connecticut College's campus in New London to continue his work as an EMT and volunteer firefighter in Waterford.

Salazar is one of several Conn students to take this course. The school has celebrated him, Sydney Bryan, Victoria Duszak and others who were drawn to stay on as emergency volunteers in the throes of a pandemic. These full-time undergraduates caught the attention of College President Katherine Bergeron for electing to stay in the region to finish their classes and continue their mission alongside other first responders despite the threat of the coronavirus.

"I think it's good for people to know how many students are engaged in community-based learning during their time here," Bergeron said. "It turns out that 70% of the students in the graduating class have been engaged in the community during their four years. This last year, for example, there was something like 18,000 community service hours devoted by students to the city of New London. The city is a wonderful partner to the college."

Akin to college seniors throughout the country, Salazar, an anthropology and environmental science double major, is disappointed there won't be a graduation ceremony this year. He is one of around 50 Conn students still living on campus. The Chicago native found his way at Conn working as an EMT/firefighter at Waterford's Quaker Hill station as well as other stations in town, including Cohanzie and Oswegatchie.

A Posse Scholar, Salazar experienced a culture shock at the northeastern liberal arts college as a young man of Latino heritage from an inner city in the middle of the country. The Posse Foundation seeks to "expand the pool from which top colleges and universities can recruit outstanding young leaders from diverse backgrounds," according to its website. He said he was raised to be involved in the community, whether that was church or school or something else, and he followed that instinct at Conn.

He's volunteered in Waterford for about four years and has risen in the ranks during his tenure as a student.

"I was promoted to second volunteer lieutenant, and it's been nice to grow in that role as an officer," Salazar said. "When I first joined, it was like, 'Who's this random kid from Chicago who didn't grow up in the town, who isn't from around here?' Three years later, he's second lieutenant."

'I want to help'

Salazar is wary of coming off as a "hero" — he did not expect Conn and The Day to take such an interest in his experience — and he credits other emergency workers for what they're doing. He also warned that his high-minded reasoning for staying in New London County and on campus might come off as cheesy, but he means it sincerely.

"I can't leave my lieutenant duties. I can't just abandon the firehouse," Salazar said. "Volunteerism is already pretty down; we're hurting for people as it is. I can't just pick up and leave and sit around at home all day in Chicago knowing that somewhere I spent the last four years of my life growing, learning and sharing experiences with great people is in need of me and others."

When Salazar talks about his decision to stay, he repeatedly comes back to "responsibility" — to his commitment at the firehouse, to people who rely on emergency workers like him. Sydney Bryan, a junior at Conn and an EMT for American Ambulance in Norwich, feels similarly.

"I stayed because I knew that I could do things to help my community," Bryan said. "I have a certain skillset, even though it's kind of on the lower end of the healthcare field, it's still there. I want to help in any way I can."

Majoring in biology and minoring in dance, Bryan, like Salazar, is a transplant — she's a native of Jackson, Wyoming. She lives in an apartment in Groton.

Conn Chemistry Professor Marc Zimmer, who knows Bryan, Salazar and Duszak from class and groups on campus, said he marvels at how students in these roles handle the pressure of their positions.

"Someone like Victoria, the one I know the best, to see people dying and working on them, on at least two occasions she's told me about, for a 20-year-old to handle all that on top of the stress of trying to take her MCATs, it must be a tremendous effort," Zimmer said.

Duszak, who works as an EMT in Wolcott, could not be reached for this article.

According to Zimmer, while students work as EMTs for a variety of reasons, there's a divide between some who work as EMTs to gain entry to medical school, and some who do it because it's a genuine calling.

"With these three, I think there's a passion," Zimmer said.

'We signed up for it'

Bryan said she and her colleagues are being extra conscientious to avoid contracting and spreading the virus.

"A good friend posted something on social media about how nothing is an emergency when there's a pandemic because you have to think and slow down more in order to protect yourself," Bryan said. "If that's pulling onto a scene where you know dispatch suspects the patient has COVID-19 because they have a fever and shortness of breath, you slow down, take the extra two minutes to put on the correct Personal Protective Equipment."

Bryan said patient care has been radically altered due to social distancing.

"Normally you comfort people, or especially distressed family members, by giving them hugs or putting a hand on their shoulder," Bryan said. "We're encouraged not to do that anymore."

Salazar noted a shift away from volunteers among Waterford fire companies during the crisis because when arriving to the scene in their personal car, they don't have the proper PPE.

"The ambulances coming directly from the station, they're being paid to cover the town," Salazar said. "A couple of times, the duty crew has been on a call, and then we get another call. In that case, I'll run down to the station and meet a driver there so I have the right equipment."

On a personal level, Bryan pointed to cooking, baking, journaling, making cloth masks, listening to books on tape and YouTube as what's keeping her sane during quarantine. She said she aspires to be an emergency physician in the future.

Salazar said he's been applying to fire, environmental and archaeology jobs in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Chicago. He and Bryan were in agreement: They've thrived alongside their coworkers, usually people born and raised in the region. They talked about a connection to the tradition of their work.

"Shout out to all my brothers and sisters in the fire service and EMS; a lot of us are dealing with a lot right now," Salazar said. "We signed up for it, that goes to show the strength we have. Nobody understands the job except us."

Bryan revels in the unpredictability of emergency work; Salazar grew up revering his swim coaches in Chicago, many of whom were firefighters.

Bergeron said they students are proof of the need for institutions to cooperate during this critical time. But Bryan and Salazar see what they do mostly as being accountable to their responsibilities.

"I don't even like telling people that I'm a firefighter because they may say, 'Oh, you think you're a hero,'" Salazar said. "I'm like, 'No I don't,' I'm just a regular guy trying to make a difference."

s.spinella@theday.com