Terry Cummings is a pastor who has spent the past 25 years serving as a chaplain to first responders in Washington and Oregon. The work requires a fortitude not many people would have for a job that is more akin to a calling. It might mean counseling paramedics after they couldn’t save a 911 caller who suffered a heart attack, or accompanying a police officer in the middle of the night to inform a mother her child has died in a car crash.

The Hermiston Herald reported last month that Cummings is retiring as the lead chaplain and chaplaincy program services coordinator for the Umatilla County Fire District #1 and Hermiston Police Department. He helped launch the program in Hermiston 15 years ago and today oversees four other chaplains, including two Spanish speakers.

Cummings joins us to share his work and the importance of being there for first responders and others on their darkest days.

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News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/10/12/retiring-hermiston-chaplain-tol/