OTTAWA — After being helped by thousands of volunteers who helped Extreme Makeover build her family a new house southwest of Ottawa, Gina Hill has her own project to help others. At Monday’s news conference, Hill said she’s working on a proposal to help veterans’ families with special needs to connect with emergency 911 services. She says the proposal was born out of her own experiences dealing with her husband’s flashbacks and her reluctance to call 911. After he first returned to Ottawa after being wounded in Iraq and being treated at Walter Reed Medical Center, Hill had a four-hour flashback after hearing a storm siren. Rather than call 911, Gina Hill said she avoided calling 911 and tried to him weather the flashback. That was a mistake, she said. She met with Police Chief Dennis Butler and explained the situation and the Franklin County 911 center began alerting ambulance crews whenever she called 911. Hill received $10,000 in cash and in-kind donations to launch her proposal.
Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2:30 p.m.
