SILVERDALE — Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue Paramedic Kevin Bernt was honored at the 2016 Health Care Heroes Program. The program highlights individuals whose contributions to health and wellness make our community a better and healthier place.

Presented with the Excellence in Emergency Medical Services Award, Paramedic Bernt was recognized for his efforts to promote CPR and improve EMS in the community. If his name sounds familiar, it may be because he recently headed up a mass CPR training at the Silverdale YMCA, which drew approximately 700 participants.

Bernt is a second generation firefighter who became interested in the fire service while riding with his father’s crew. To this day, he still considers his father his personal hero.

Bernt has also been a driving force behind implementing PulsePoint in the Kitsap community. PulsePoint is a free mobile application integrated into the county’s 911 system to alert CPR-trained bystanders in the immediate area of a public cardiac emergency. To get the PulsePoint application, visit www.pulsepoint.org/download, or search for PulsePoint in the app store.

— Edited by Michelle Beahm