CONWAY, SC (WBTW) – It’s probably something you don’t think about as you sit down to your Thanksgiving meal, but men and women are out on our roads, away from their families to keep you safe this holiday.

Our first responders work Thanksgiving, Christmas, and pretty much any holiday you have off, they’re there for you.

Chris Thompson with the Horry County Sheriff’s Office spent Thursday working.

“You’ve got firefighters, EMS, dispatchers, nurses, doctors, and you know the biggest thing is we do it to help people. Just because it’s a holiday, and it’s a special holiday Thanksgiving, but just because it’s a holiday doesn’t mean the world stops,” said Thompson.

Thompson says they do this because they love it and they want to help people in their community.

“When you get that one person a week or one person a month that actually comes up and tells you I appreciate what you do, thank you for what you do, it actually motivates you and it gives you that extra drive to get out there for the next six months or the next year, just that one person telling you they appreciate what you do,” said Thompson.

So, be sure to thank your first responders this Thanksgiving for what can sometimes be a “thankless” job.