The Greek philosopher Plato never worked in Sunflower County, but observance of a proverb that is attributed to him—necessity is the mother of invention—has made a remarkable difference in the lives of county residents and persons in nearby areas.
Seeing the need to have a dedicated group of volunteers to answer the call when Sunflower County residents are in impending and perilous conditions, Kelon Dill and Stan Bennett came up with the idea of forming a county-based band of search and rescue volunteers.
In 2008, Dill and Bennett along with a collection of others had taken part in a massive search that involved the recovery of remains for a missing local woman. Bennett described that ordeal as an arduous undertaking.
“Volunteers came together along with MBI and all and searched out there three or four days before we found her remains,” Bennett said.
It was after that recovery operation that Bennett and Dill resolved that Sunflower County should have its own rescue unit and approached Sheriff James Haywood with the idea.
Bennett said the plan was to form a group who, with the proper equipment and the proper planning, could successfully seek out and recover lost or helpless persons without having to call in help from other counties. “And he went along with it,” Bennett said.
So, in late September of 2009 the Sunflower County Search and Rescue volunteer group was formed.
“That’s when we started… recruiting people, having raffles and stuff like that and buying equipment,” said Bennett.
Their first meeting was held on September 24 at First Baptist Church and it brought in 12 people with the common goal of helping the community. Since that time they have received specialized training from Homeland Security officials and various others.
Bennett said it wasn’t long before the sheriff’s department and local police were calling the volunteers out to help in searches.
“And we were finding everybody we were called out for, not because we were good, it’s just we weren’t going to give up until we found them,” he said.
Bennett said whether the person just walked off or they met with disaster, SAR was able to find them and not just in Sunflower County.
The group of volunteers that now numbers about 50 men and women from all over the county has been called in by neighboring counties to assist their rescue efforts and has received numerous recognitions including one from the U.S. Marine Corps for help in the Yanky 72 plane crash recovery endeavor.
In addition to the skilled volunteers the SAR has also acquired a couple of K-9 searchers that have been trained and are handled by Bennett and volunteer Rookie Creel, who have attended seminars and workshops on dog handling.
Over the years, the group has utilized the sale of raffle tickets to help generate funds to purchase equipment. “We’ve got two side by sides, two boats, motors and trailers, we’ve got an equipment trailer that’s got lights, fans, generators… everything that we would need,” Bennett said.
The members also purchased some of the items that are used and the Sunflower County Board of Supervisors contributed funds to purchase one of the new side-by-side ATVs. Bennett also asked the county leaders to construct a building to house the numerous pieces of equipment they have acquired over the past 10 years.
They wanted a centralized location to store the items so that they are easily accessible and protected from exposure and the elements.
The new facility will also give the volunteer emergency workers a place to hold meetings. “We were having to go around and beg people, ‘Hey man we need to have a meeting, can we use your building?” said Bennett. The building will also have a room to store their files and records as well as restroom facilities.
