First responder couple protect and serve
Shining a Light: A series of stories for Black History Month highlighting people making a difference today in Central Florida’s Black community.
It was the night of June 12, 2016. “We get a call out to go downtown,” recalled Dana Canty, an Orlando firefighter and paramedic. “I get a call from [my husband] Mark and he asks ‘where are you guys going’ and I said downtown.”
He told her about the mass shooting at Pulse Nightclub and the thought that there could be two shooters in the building.
“I was home. All three of my daughters were here, and I was actually awake when the call came in. It was after 2 a.m.,” said Mark Canty, who was then SWAT commander at Orlando Police Department. “When I got the call ... I knew it wasn’t normal. I’d been in SWAT for so long, and it wasn’t the typical way that I would get called in for SWAT.”
After speaking with his wife, he got dressed. He discovered more information about the situation, and one thought crossed his mind:
“This is really bad.”
As first responders, they were both called to Pulse where a gunman killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in a mass shooting inside the nightclub.
“The key thing was, I was home with the kids so she could go out and do her thing. So she knew they were safe with me,” Mark said, recalling the night. He kissed his children goodbye, telling them he loved them and he would be back soon.
“So, we just went and got to doing the business of the day,” Mark said. “That was saving people. That’s what we do.”
The Lake County couple has been married for 21 years. Dana Canty has worked as a firefighter and paramedic for Orlando Fire Department for the last eight years. Mark Canty has served as the undersheriff for the past two years at the Orange County Sheriffs’ Office, one step below Sheriff John Mina. Before that, he was in the Orlando Police Department for 22 years.
The two met at Robins Wood Junior High School when they
lived in Pine Hills.
“I had a crush on him,” Dana said. “He was a football star and all the girls liked him.”
They went to different high schools and after college had a chance meeting at a party after a wedding in 1996. His buddies suggested he get her number and he did. He called her at exactly 2 p.m. the next day and the rest is history.
The Cantys are both athletic — lifting weights in their home gym together — with ageless features. Dana’s hair is styled to perfection, as she wears a smile and class(ic) red lipstick to accent her delicate features. Mark, who played football at Northwestern University, has a granite chin and a leaders’ demonstrative tone.
When he speaks, people listen.
Mark was born in Germany — his father was in the Air Force and his mother was an Orlando native. He then moved to Arizona, Delaware and back to Germany, where he saw the Berlin Wall before it fell and traveled throughout the country, in addition to Italy and Austria. When Mark was 13, his dad retired from the Air Force and the family moved to Orlando to be near his grandparents.
Dana lived with her single mother — Vivian Lewis, who was an elementary school teacher — and two brothers. She and her older brother played together, with her younger brother coming 14 years after her birth.
“When I lived off Mercy Drive, I was quite the tomboy,” said Dana. “I used to run with the boys, and we used to flip, race and stuff like that. It was the norm to mingle in with the guys, so when I became a firefighter, it felt natural. I just kind of blended right in.”
The most influential people in Mark’s life were his parents, Ed H. Canty Sr. and Beddie M. Canty. They sacrificed to raise Mark and his brother. Neither graduated high school, but both later earned GEDs.
“They provided a very good home, and we were probably working class, but we always thought we were rich because we never wanted for anything,” said Mark. “My mother was very compassionate, and she told me and my brother that we were special, and we were capable of great things. My dad had a tremendous work ethic, and I think it has rubbed off on me. He would work all the time and make sure he could provide for his family. I hope I’m providing for my family in the same way.”
Dana said her father, Willie Alloway, had the most influence on her life. He passed away when she was 21.
“He didn’t talk a lot, but when he did speak, he spoke wisdom,” said Dana. “He said, ‘You can always judge a man by his word. If his word is good, the man is good.’ He also said when you are looking for a career in life, ‘Find something you’re willing to do for free, then find somebody willing to pay you for it, and you’ll never work a day in your life.’ “
“He never lied. [He] lived with honor and lived with truth,” Dana said. “I just hope I can make him proud and work in the same light.”
Dana discovered the job she would do for free — and the county pays her to do it. Her career as a firefighter/paramedic provides her opportunities to help others, make a difference in their lives and share the life and light of which her father spoke.
Looking back on their experience with Pulse, neither has regrets about heading to the same crime scene.
“[It] was probably the closest we’ve ever come to saying goodbye,” Dana said. “Because we were both headed to the same situation. I personally felt at peace with it because I made a decision to do this job and whatever that entails and I’m going to do it.”
“We always say, I love you and goodbye,” Mark adds. “We never leave for work without saying goodbye.”