EMS in Utopia began with a challenge. After a local resident lost her father to a heart attack more than forty years ago, she began training and reached the level of EMT-Special Skills. She challenged another resident to be her driver if she passed the state exam. He accepted the challenge. She passed. The Utopia branch of Uvalde County EMS was formed on April 1, 1976. In 1979, Uvalde County EMS split into four separate entities, one of which was Utopia Volunteer EMS. Today, we are the EMS provider serving the Utopia-Vanderpool ESD #1. The service area is 450 square miles, spanning portions of Bandera, Uvalde, Real and Medina Counties. The ESD serves approximately 1,750 citizens, and it experiences frequent rushes of visitors enjoying the region’s equine, rodeo, hunting, bicycling, motorcycling, mountain climbing, hiking and swimming activities.