Todd Pelletier of West Hartford, Conn., honored at Fairfield University | Press Releases

Todd Pelletier of West Hartford, Conn., has received the William J. Kramer Humanitarian Award from the Fairfield University Alumni Association. He received the honor during the association's annual Student Awards Dinner on Tuesday, April 20.

Presented in memory of William J. Kramer, '60, the first alumnus of Fairfield University to serve as chairman of its board of trustees, the award is given annually to a senior, who, through service to the external community, has shown a true spirit of volunteerism and best exemplifies the Ignatian tradition of being men and women for others.

Pelletier has shown that spirit since he was 15, when he became a ski patroller in Maine and was recognized as Junior Ski Patroller of the Year. During high school, he augmented his skills by completing Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician training.

Since his freshman year at Fairfield, Pelletier has volunteered for Stratford Emergency Medical Services two or three nights a week and, during his sophomore year, he was among the many volunteers called to assist following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist acts in New York City. He took part in the effort and helped treat patients.

Pelletier joined Stratford EMS' Special Operations Division, a unit trained to provide special assistance on atypical events in the region. He was recently promoted to the rank of lieutenant in that division.

In February, Pelletier attained another volunteer milestone: He logged his 3,000th hour with the service.

Pelletier has also worked in Hartford for American Medical Response and has been an assistant instructor for Emergency Medical Technician courses in southwestern Connecticut. In 2003, he participated in a nursing internship program in Yale-New Haven Hospital's Pediatric Emergency Room and he is pursuing a career in pediatric critical care nursing.