DA awards Shrewsbury firefighters, police officers for saving a baby

The Worcester County District Attorney, Joseph D. Early Jr., acknowledged the efforts of two members of the Shrewsbury Police Department and two members of the Shrewsbury Fire Department that saved a baby’s life.

“A child in distress is a truly heart-wrenching situation,” DA Early said while presenting the District Attorney’s Team Excellence and Merit (TEAM) award to Firefighter Rory Ahern, Firefighter Ben Gerber, Police Detective Matthew Caola, and Police Officer Shawn Valliere.

The public servants performed life-saving breathing techniques on a one-year-old girl Olivia Marhefka that was not breathing after answering a call in Shrewsbury on September 22, 2021.

“Caola, Valliere, Aherb, and Gerber relied on their training and experience to ensure the baby girl survived. Shrewsbury is lucky to have such dedicated and passionate police officers and firefighters serving its community,” Mr. Early said.

“This is a great example of police, fire, and healthcare providers, who have all been tirelessly working long days throughout the pandemic, coming together to save the lives of others. Detective Caloa and Officer Valliere’s quick actions demonstrate their continued commitment to helping others. I am proud of their tremendous efforts,” said Shrewsbury Police Chief Kevin Anderson. “Thank you to DA Early for recognizing their outstanding performance.”

The baby girl was transported to UMass Memorial Hospital and survived, thanks to the actions of the mentioned public servants.

“Fire, Police, and EMS are like a sports team – we may all play different positions, but together we make up a great public safety team,” said Shrewsbury Fire Chief Jim Vuona. “This is a wonderful opportunity for the Police officers and Firefighters to be recognized together for their life-saving work in the community!”

The Worcester County District Attorney created the TEAM Award in 2019 to recognize public safety employees who go above and beyond the call of duty.