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Texas Talks

Hello All! I just wanted to take the time to tell all of you how much I am looking forward to this upcoming year. The Board members are already hard at work serving you. We will be reaching out to you so you can become more involved in our chapter through our committees. Also, we are looking for locations to hold training opportunities. If you or your agency needs training in your area, please contact the Board at txapco@team911.com. We will do our best to fulfill your request and your training needs. I hope you take the time to congratulate Kelle Hall as the newest member of our Board. We are elated to have her on our team! Please read her introduction in the newsletter so you can learn all about Kelle. We have no doubt that she will shine in her position and fulfill her duties with our members being the number one priority. We have appointed a new Secondary CCAM. Ben Zotyka has joined our Board and we are looking forward to working with him. He currently works for Motorola Inc. which will be beneficial for the Board since our goal is to reincorporate radio classes and increase the attendance by radio professionals at our conferences. Welcome aboard Ben! We will have electronic voting available to you for the election in April. This is something that Gloria Little spent a lot of time on and tirelessly researched methods of electronic voting to find the easiest and most economical choice. We hope electronic voting will give every member a voice during the election. If you have questions about electronic voting, do not hesitate to ask. If you need anything from me or have suggestions to make our Texas Chapter better, please e-mail me at kimberly@team911.com. I enjoy hearing from our members and your ideas are always welcome. I hope to see you in Denver at the National APCO conference and we hope you can make it to Texas Night Out. We are having a Murder Mystery dinner which will be fun for all! Registration for the event will be up soon.

Kimberly Turner President

Texas Chapter of APCO

May 2017

Texas Talks A Publication of the Texas Chapter of the Association of Public Safety Communication Officials

Kimberly Turner President

kimberly@team911.com

Gloria Little President Elect

glittle@team911.com

Roxie Dodd 1st Vice-President

roxie@team911.com

Kelle Hall 2nd Vice-President kelle@team911.com

Regina Cochran Secretary / Treasurer

rmcochran@team911.com

Bill Keller Executive Council

Representative bkeller@txapco.org

Bill Behar Primary CCAM

billb@team911.com

Ben Zotyka Secondary CCAM

benz@team911.com

Board Group Email txapco@team911.com

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First a special Thank You to all the sponsors, conference committees, and volunteers; your dedication and commitment are what make this conference successful each year. It was great to see so many smiling faces and to mingle with those in our profession at the 2017 Texas Public Safety Conference, held April 9-12th, 2017 in Galveston, Texas. The training was excellent, the vendor hall was filled with new tools to help in our industry, and the opportunities for learning and networking were abundant. Pre-Conference courses included: Texas NENA sponsored: Recruit, Hire, and Retain & Promote for Success! Texas APCO sponsored: “Teamwork”- How to Lead and How to Follow and General Communications Technician Level 1 Certification Course “It’s more that Push-to-Talk”. The Opening Session on Monday got off to an exhilarating start as Staff Sgt. Keni Thomas spoke about “Train as you fight – Fight as you train and lead by Example”. Keni emphasized that the focus needs to be on people and the values that make relationships excel. Everyone has something to bring to the table. Several attendees had the opportunity to meet and speak with Keni after his presentation. The day continued with the opening of the vendor hall and professional development tracks including Next Gen 9-1-1 and emerging technologies such as “Multimedia Recording and Incident Reconstruction “and “When Autism has an Emergency” Later in the evening attendees headed off to the S.S. Colonel Moody Gardens for the IP Partner Networking event with dinner and a karaoke show. This was another great opportunity to spend time with each other and network. Tuesday started with a full day of professional development tracks and meetings. Training tracks i emphasized training for frontline telecommunicators, leadership development, communications center management, emergency preparedness, radio technologies, social media, and industry products. There was something for everyone who was there looking to gain new information. The night was topped off with the Tuesday Night “Mardi Gras Gala” Event which included music, food, costume contests, and a chance to do some magic or watch the juggler. The final day of the conference included more professional development tracks, Texas NENA Past Presidents Alumni Meeting and The Awards Luncheon.

Planning is well underway for the 2018 Texas Public Safety Conference in Galveston. We look forward to bringing the same energy to Galveston next spring. Mark your calendars and plan to join us next year!

The success of our

organization is dependent

on your involvement. Find your

voice and let it be heard!

2017 Spring Conference Re-Cap

By: Regina Cochran, MPA Secretary / Treasurer

Save the Date April 7 – 11, 2018

Sneak Peak of Photos

You can view additional photos from the 2017 Texas Public Safety Conference the TX APCO website at http://www.txapco.org/photo-gallery

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Executive Council Report

By: Bill Keller Executive Council

Greetings from your Executive Council and all of APCO! Past Chapter President and APCO Life Member Joe Trowbridge passed away in Bryan on February 14, 2017. The funeral was Saturday February 18 and was well attended by Texas APCO members including Joe Hanna, Joe Blair, Mr. & Mrs. Ken Yoder, Holly Faison, Becky Rae and myself. Our continued condolences go out to the Trowbridge Family. The FCC is no longer automatically mailing an official paper copy of your license authorization. Instead, they provide an official copy via email from the contact information on file. Incorrect information linked to your license could result in a significant problem and/or a costly issue with your FCC license. Fortunately, APCO-AFC offers full service license management and licensing services to manage your license(s). Contact APCO-AFC for more information. The annual conference is slated to be held in Denver, Colorado this year August 13-16. Volunteer shifts are still available and it is a great way to reduce conference registration expenses. For more information on volunteering and the conference go to www.apco2017.org. The recent White House petition drive to reclassify public safety telecommunicators as “Protective Service Occupations” fell short of the minimum 100,000 signature threshold. APCO Intl. is continuing toward this goal to demonstrate proper respect and recognition of the public safety communications profession. A group of APCO members from Saudi Arabia has petitioned APCO Intl to become a Chapter. The Management Committee granted them a tentative chapter status until the annual conference. The entire Executive Council will act on this petition in August. If you have any thoughts or concerns, please contact any Texas Board officer or myself.

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This month’s message from Bill Behar your Primary CCAM (Chapter Commercial Advisory Member): We had an awesome conference and have received many great reviews from both the attendees and commercial members. I would like to give a “shout out” to Brian Dunkle and thank him for all his hard work over the past 6 years. I have enjoyed getting to know Brian; he and I spent many long hours working hard to assist in bettering the TX APCO chapter. This year he stepped down from his position as secondary CCAM. I wish Brian the all the best for his future. I am pleased to announce that Ben Zotyka with Motorola Solutions has been appointed to the position as the Secondary CCAM to finish out Brian’s last year in his term. I have known Ben for many years and I look forward to working with him on the Board. We are getting things ready for the Texas Night Out (TNO) in Denver at the National APCO conference. We are looking for sponsors. If your company would like to be a sponsor please contact me at bbehar@team911.com. The Commercial Advisory Council (CAC) Nominations Deadline is May 31, 2017. If you are a motivated and engaged Commercial member of APCO and would like to help make the Association even better, we encourage you to become involved in the CAC. Nominations will be accepted through May 31, 2017 by email to cacnominations@apcointl.org . If you have any questions, please contact: Kevin Kearns, 2017 CAC Nominations Committee Chair kkearns@ixpcorp.com P: (206) 979-1313

Industry Partner Corner

By: Bill Behar Texas APCO Primary CCAM

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COMMITTEE PARTICIPATION

By: Roxie Dodd 1st Vice President

It is 2017, you have a new Board for 2017-2018 with new opportunities! We would love involvement from our members all over Texas, so that each committee can be made up of members from each area of the State. What a great way to network and meet others that understand your job! One of the best ways to get involved, meet other telecommunicators, and know more about APCO is to join a Committee. We have had some members show interest, but we still need more members to fill all of our committees. If you would like to get involved please be sure to let us know which committee(s) interest you the most. Below you will find a list of the committees and a brief description of each: Alumni Committee: (limited to past presidents of Texas APCO) Serves as a resource to the Board Supports the Chapter Identifies new leadership within the Chapter

Awards Committee: (It is important that this committee be made up from members around the State) Solicits nominations from members as well as non-members for all categories awarded during the annual

spring conference Selects members of the Chapter to serve on sub-committees to evaluate nominations in their area of

expertise e.g. Telecommunicator of the Year, Supervisor of the Year, Team of the Year, and Radio Technician pf the Year

Reviews annual nominations and recommendations of sub-committee members and then submits recommendations of award designees to the Board Liaison

Educational/Training Committee: Identifies education and training opportunities and communicates such to members via effective marketing

tools (flyers, email blasts, newsletter article, etc.) Provides a list of APCO courses within the State of Texas to the Newsletter editor quarterly Serves as the Educational Session Chair for the Fall conference as directed by the Board Liaison

Historical Committee: Locates and preserves all historical records and other related materials for the Chapter Maintains an accurate and comprehensive record for historical content Communicates the heritage of the Chapter to all interested parties Serves as the resource for all members, Board Officers, and RPL students as needed

Technical Committee: Provides pertinent information to Chapter members as well as the Board concerning technical issues that

apply to public safety communication Encourages professional development as well as provides information of innovations in the field of public

safety communications

Membership Committee: Recruits new members as well as renewal membership Encourages active participation of members within the Chapter Develops effective marketing tools (flyer, email blasts, membership drives, newsletter articles, etc.) to

encourage membership Serves as greeter during annual business meetings, as directed by the Board Liaison

Credential Committees: Identifies members of Texas APCO eligible for Chapter or National Membership designations Makes recommendations to the Board of nominations

It is the members that help the Board make Texas APCO and ALL it can be. Without you and your help we cannot grow and continually improve Texas APCO. We encourage you to become involved and help join us in building Texas APCO to newer heights!

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Last year I said that 2014 was going to be the best conference put together by Texas APCO/NENA. I am going to predict the 2015 Joint Conference is going to surpass 2014’s conference. This year we have improved many areas, such as a new Industry Partners (IP) Exhibit Hall layout, a better registration process, more dedicated IP exhibit hall time, and much more.

I want to thank all of the Industry Partners that participated in last

Get to Know your 2nd Vice President

Kelle Hall

I am thrilled to be serving as your 2nd Vice-President of Texas APCO. I am

proud to be your voice and representative. I currently live in Dallas and work for the Town of Highland Park as the Communications Manager. I was born and raised in Amarillo, and began my career with the Amarillo Police Department in 1984. In 1987, I began working for the Randall County Sheriff’s Office where I eventually rose to the rank of Lieutenant overseeing the Service Division. The Service Division consisted of Communications, Records, Warrants, and Training and Personnel. I retired from there to take a huge leap of faith, and moved to Dallas. This June marks 5 years, and I have never had a single regret. I still love every minute of it. I work with a fantastic group of people and am blessed to oversee a group of intelligent, motivated and compassionate communication specialists. My bosses, both past and present, are all you could ask for in a leader and more! I especially love life in the DFW Metroplex, and all the opportunities it has to offer. I have 2 children: Ben, age 29, who works for the Randall County Sheriff’s Office as a telecommunicator; and Elizabeth, age 28, who works for Garland PD in Communications. I am proud of both of them because they are so good at a job I’ve been passionate about for over 30 years! I truly love APCO because the association embraces every field in public safety communications. From radio technicians, GIS personnel, and public educators to telecommunicators, database and I.T. managers, we support you and want to allow you every opportunity to succeed. As a Texas APCO board member, I value your input. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with ideas you may have, especially opportunities for our membership!

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What if you suddenly found yourself in the middle of a murderous and mysterious crime scene?

What if you were told the murderer was still in the room?

What if the murderer was sitting right next to you and you didn’t even know it?

Detectives Needed at TNO in Denver!

Gloria Little President Elect

When: Monday, August 14, 2017 Time: 7:00pm to 10:00pm Where: Embassy Suites Downtown, 1420 Stout St., Denver, CO 80202

Come join us for a night of mystery and intrigue!

Texas APCO is hosting a Dinner Murder Mystery where YOU have to play detective and find the killer.

Do you think you have the skills to solve the crime?

Let’s find out! Dinner and drinks will be served. You must register to

attend; no exceptions.

If you would like to be part of the mystery, indicate upon registering and you could be chosen to be part of the action!

Registration opening soon so SAVE THE DATE and keep a look out for

updates.

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Texas APCO Award Recipients

TX APCO Radio Technologist of the Year

Daniel Webb

TX APCO Supervisor of the

Year Danielle Grunden

TX APCO Team of the Year Euless Police Department

Cynthia Pena, Kathy Bowden, Kym Pitman and Beverly

Williams

TX APCO Telecommunicator

of the Year Rene Lozano, Jr.

TX APCO Trainer of the Year

Carolyn Evans-Humphrey

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During the Spring Business meeting, recognition awards were given to Past Board members. Brian Dunkle, who has set on the board as both Primary and Secondary CCAM and Tina Chaffin, Secretary/Treasurer (not present) were recognized by the board for their years of service, commitment and dedication to the Chapter of Texas APCO. Monica Corbin-Simon, Past-President was presented a clock as a reflection of the time she has given as a member of the TX APCO Board from April 2013 to April 2017. Andrea Wilson, TX NENA Vice-President and Conference Chair was recognized for her dedication and hard work during the 2017 Texas Public Safety Conference. Andrea’s commitment to both organizations is admirable and her ideas have made our conferences get better and better each year!

2017 TX APCO Business Meeting

Award Recognition

Monica Corbin-Simon

Brian Dunkle

Andrea Wilson