HOUSTON — On Tuesday, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo honored first responders.
The First Responders Day Honor and Awards Ceremony was held at NRG Center at 5 p.m.
The day is meant to celebrate what it means to be a first responder. They consistently show compassion, bravery and they take action during uncertain times.
At RodeoHouston, they ring a bell three times to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice. This year, there were 41 first responders from 22 agencies who lost their lives in the line of duty.
The First Responder of the Year honorees are nominated by various law enforcement and firefighting agencies across the eight counties that make up the Houston metropolitan area.
In 2022, the Rodeo recognized 15 individuals and one group that showed innovation, exhibited bravery and performed life-saving efforts.
HPD DART honored
The Houston Police Department's Domestic Abuse Response Team was recognized for its work.
DART was created in 2020 due to the growing need to provide care to victims of violent crime.
The team consists of specially trained HPD officers and credentialed civilian victim advocates. They respond to "high risk" domestic violence crime scenes while they're still in progress. Once they're at the scene, DART units assess and coordinate to offer victims emergency shelter, clothing, food or anything else they need.
According to HPD, between October 2020 and September 2021, DART units responded to 1,090 scenes and provided service to 514 victims.
Their work earned them the First Responder of the Year Award at RodeoHouston.
METRO officer honored
METRO police officer Brendan McDonough was honored for saving a woman who was being attacked on a METRO rail platform.
The Rodeo surprised him by flying his mother in from Florida. She's battling cancer and was able to be there to see her son get the public recognition he earned.