HALL AMBULANCE - Key Persons

Christine Harker

Job Titles:

Director, Harvey L. Hall EMS Academy

Harvey L. Hall, Founder of Hall Ambulance Service, and his wife, Lavonne, who now serves as Chairwoman of the Board and Chief Administrative Officer, celebrating the 45th Anniversary of the Company in 2016. The prologue leading to the first chapter of the Hall Ambulance story began on a dare-literally. In 1960, Harvey L. Hall was employed as an orderly when a friend, working as an ambulance attendant, dared him to go on a ride-along. The experience was so exhilarating that the next day he embarked on what would result in a 58-year career as a servant to humanity. Even in those early days, his passion and dedication were readily apparent. A 1967 article in The Bakersfield Californian, which detailed his heroic efforts to save a child, contained a quote that would set the stage for the kind of ambulance service he would eventually build. Asked how he felt after delivering the child to the hospital, Hall said, "It is my duty to perform to the greatest of my ability. I am dedicated to the ambulance industry…towards upgrading the profession and being able to preserve lives." With a decade of experience, Hall was ready to establish an ambulance service built on his vision and ideals of care, compassion, and community. On February 10, 1971, Harvey L. Hall founded Hall Ambulance Service from his residence in Bakersfield. Hall Ambulance quickly established itself as a provider of high-quality ambulance service based on exemplary patient care. Over the past 52-years, the Company has stayed at the forefront of advancements in emergency medical services and investments in technology. This includes becoming the first local ambulance service to provide paramedic service (1975); implementing Kern County's first critical care transport program (2009); the Company's Communications Division assuming dispatch of 100% of all requests for medical aid throughout Kern County (2015); and, the opening of the state-of-the-art Harvey L. Hall EMS Academy (2019). Through the years, Hall Ambulance's positive reputation resulted in other cities seeking to bring Hall Ambulance to their community. The first expansion was to Arvin (1975), followed by Lamont (1976), Frazier Park (1978), Tehachapi (1979); Mojave, Rosamond, California City, and Boron (1994); Taft (1995), Shafter (1999), Wasco (2014), and Delano (2021). In April 2018, Mr. Hall became ill due to Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease and passed away on May 19, 2018. His wife, Lavonne C. Hall stepped in as President and CEO, and under her leadership, the Company continued to move forward under the ideals introduced by our founder of care, compassion, and community. While Mrs. Hall is still the sole owner of Hall Ambulance Service, Inc., in July 2023, she transitioned to chairwoman of the board and chief administrative officer, naming John Surface as president and CEO. Today, Hall Ambulance serves as the 9-1-1 paramedic provider for 94% of Kern County, California's population.