CAZENOVIA — The Cazenovia Area Volunteer Ambulance Corps (CAVAC) recently hired Jeffrey Jones as its first paid chief of operations (COO) in its 51-year history.
Currently based at 106 Nelson St., the local ambulance service relies on a team of volunteers — drivers, crew coordinators, emergency medical technicians, and general members — and paid professional paramedics. A high school student corps also supports its operations. In addition to providing emergency medical services (EMS) to Cazenovia and surrounding communities, CAVAC offers short-term medical equipment loans and has a NYS-certified child/baby car seat installer. Periodically, CAVAC conducts community training classes in hands-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), CPR-Basic Life Support, and other topics.
Jones, who will take over the COO role on May 19, has been a CAVAC paramedic and the organization’s deputy of training since April 2024; before that, he provided various training sessions for CAVAC throughout the years and was a lieutenant firefighter paramedic with Fayetteville Fire & EMS.
“After over 50 years of volunteer leadership, CAVAC has chosen to create a paid chief of operations position, and I was lucky enough to be appointed,” said Jones. “This position is the senior leadership role for the organization and oversees all aspects of the day-to-day operations. . . . I really enjoy the community aspect of the organization and am proud of the services CAVAC provides. [Everyone] is there to serve the community, and many members have been there for years, if not decades. I see unlimited opportunities for the organization and hope to make CAVAC a leader in public education, training, and emergency response.”
According to the COO job description, the position requires exceptional leadership, problem-solving skills, and a deep understanding of EMS protocols and operational logistics.
“The COO ensures the delivery of high-quality patient care, operational efficiency, regulatory compliance, and strategic alignment with the organization’s goals,” according to the description.
The responsibilities include overseeing the training and supervision of all operational personnel to ensure the delivery of consistent, high-quality patient care; program planning; maintaining staffing, vehicles, equipment, and facilities; and performing other duties assigned by the CAVAC Executive Committee.
Jones will take over the COO position from Rick Macheda, who volunteered his time while working full-time for National Grid and serving the Cazenovia Fire Department.
“When CAVAC began, [we] had advanced life support (ALS) providers who also worked full-time jobs,” said CAVAC Executive Committee President Carla Kinney. “As time went on, our ALS providers had a hard time keeping up their skills and maintaining qualifications, and it became too difficult to train volunteers to this care level. So, we decided to go with paid paramedics in 2001. This allowed us to provide ALS support 24/7. Now jump ahead another 24 years, and we have more calls, more state oversight, and more demands on the chief of operations. Our departing chief worked a full-time job, 40-plus hours/week, in addition to [his duties as] chief of ops. The poor man was run ragged. So, once again, we took a hard look at how [we could] continue to provide the best pre-hospital care to our community; [we] realized we needed to hire a chief of operations.”
According to Kinney, CAVAC needed to find a paramedic who was well-versed in New York State regulations and had the leadership and time required for the job.
“We had incredible candidates apply, and it was probably the hardest selection process I have ever participated in,” she said. “To have a choice of talented paramedics was a luxury, but [it made for] a difficult decision. Jeff is a retired lieutenant firefighter paramedic from Fayetteville FD. He is our current training officer and has done an incredible job with that. So, after much thought, we decided he was the right person for the job.”
May is National Stop the Bleed Month, and May 22 is National Stop the Bleed Day. To raise awareness and encourage the public to learn how to control severe bleeding in emergencies, Jones has spearheaded an effort to bring one-hour American College of Surgeons Stop the Bleed courses to the Cazenovia community this month.
According to Jones, CAVAC has scheduled eight public classes. The certificate courses are free, and advance registration is required. Sign up at cavacambulance.org/education/cavac-training-classes/.
“Should a person suffer an injury causing life-threatening bleeding, they may have only minutes to live,” Jones said. “Unfortunately, even the best-staffed EMS agency likely won’t be on the scene in time to make a difference, so we need the public to act. With the right training, anyone can stop bleeding; this class provides exactly that. We will also discuss how to obtain bleeding control kits that contain the right equipment should the unthinkable ever happen.”
To learn more about CAVAC, visit cavacambulance.org.
