Ossiffer Mike

No, that's not a typo.

That's what I call our Sales Director.

Because in addition to working full-time at Holiday World, Mike also patrols for the town's police department and is a reserve deputy for the county sheriff's department. He's a First Responder and a volunteer firefighter here in town, too.

You know ... hero stuff.

Maybe calling him "Ossiffer Mike" is a bit disrespectful. But at least I don't call him "Barney" the way some here on staff do.

Teasingly, of course. And Mike is tall, thin and lanky, so a slight resemblance cannot be denied.

But still.

When WFIE-TV called and asked us to take part in tonight's broadcast for Tornado Relief Telethon, Mike immediately came to mind.

Because Mike was there, all day Sunday. Searching for survivors. Slogging through a deep ditch, knee-deep in water and surrounded by horrifying debris.

He came bursting in my office Monday to talk about the experience.

I'll never forget Mike saying how impressed he was to see how incredibly well prepared Warrick and Vanderburgh Counties were for the rescue effort and how coordinated even the very early searches were.

Each person was assigned a specific task, given the appropriate tools. And everyone cooperated. (Even working together to catch someone's pet bird, to be tenderly handed over to animal rescue personnel.)

Mike has been asked to talk about his experience during the Telethon on Channel 14 this evening at 7:15 pm CST.

If you live outside of the broadcast area, you can stream it live.

And if you can spare a bit, please make a donation. There's still a lot of work to be done.