I am not sure I can do this, but I knew that I needed to try. I would like to nominate the team of Dispatchers, that currently work here, at the Racine County Communications Center. I am the Assistant Director, here at the RCCC, and I believe I work with the most talented and dedicated team of 43 people. Our center was consolidated as of January 2011, so our team is made up of 4 dispatch centers( Mount Pleasant PD/FD, Caledonia PD/FD, Racine PD/FD and the Racine County Sheriff's Office) that were put together to form the now, Racine County Communications Center. Some Dispatchers were pleased with this move/change and others were less than pleased, and understandably so, as not everyone deals with uncertainty and change with ease and grace. This group of great people, otherwise known as our "work family", has really molded together quite well, over the course of the last 2 years and we have a very solid dispatch center, even being understaffed at the moment. Our team has overcome personnel challenges, the challenges of attempting to get the fire departments and police departments that we dispatch for to become as universal in their operations as possible (that is still a work in progress, and great progress has been made, and the challenges of setting day to day operational policies, while attempting not to sway to far from what each dispatch center was familiar with. I cannot stress enough how well this team works together and even works through those tough moments in the center, that occur, before, after or during a high stress situation. We are all currently EMD trained and we are working toward a stanard level of training (all being PST1 certified) and we are sending/hosting 15 Dispatchers to APCO's Active Shooter Training. We have 3 Dispatchers that are APCO certified Instructors and they teach PST1 to their co-workers. Our 2013 goal is to create a CET (Community Education Team) where we will go to the area schools/daycares and educate them on 911­why we ask the questions we do, why it's important to speak clearly, etc. We are VERY excited for this special project. We are also putting together a Customer Service Training, which 3-4 of us, will go over the importance and some helpful techniques when dealing with our 911 customers. I am very proud to be a part of this team, the Racine County Communications Center, and I so look forward to the many many years to come, where we can continue to grow together as a "work family". We know that we are all here for each other and that if there is a problem they know to tackle it head on, or to ask myself or one of the Supervisors for help and/or guidance in the matter at hand. They have a lot of fun doing a job that can be very depressing and they truly enjoy the jobs we do, and share the passion that any great dispatcher has. It takes a very special person to do this job we do, and to have 40+ special people all here in one room is a great blessing. I have never nominated anyone for anything before, but I truly believe that the Racine County Dispatchers ALL deserve to be the 2013 Telecommunicators of the Year. Please do not hesitate to contact me to hear more about our team and how we work together to make great things happen! Thank You for your kind consideration, Jackie Bratz Assistant Director Racine County Communications

On April 16, 2012, one month after the implementation of Medical Priority Dispatch, our center received a 911 call of a 60 year old male in full cardiac arrest. Using the protocols provided by Priority Dispatch, Jessica provided the distraught female caller with appropriate calming techniques and critical CPR instructions. CPR continued until the arrival of the local police department and the deployment of an AED. Medical personnel arrived on the scene and ascertained viable life signs. The victim was transported to a local hospital and walked out the door several weeks later. The victim is still alive today and living a near normal life! Jessica's calm and concise instructions allowed the woman to do CPR appropriately until the police officers arrived on scene to take over. This scenario exemplifies the essence of a Dispatcher and the "vital link" they provide to our customers. Jessica is receiving a "Life Saving" award at this year's Fond du Lac County Law Enforcement Banquet. The uniqueness of this save is a full arrest turning into a walk out the door!

Jessica has been a dispatcher with Fond du Lac County since July 2009. When Jessica was interviewing for the job, she was asked what her career objective was. Jessica's answer, without hesitation, was "to be a Fond du Lac County Dispatcher". She is that, and so much more in every way! Jessica always portrays a positive attitude and strives to do the best job she can. She represents the epitome of dispatching!

These three are being nominated based on all of your qualifications plus these two separate incidents in Whitewater. The first relates to Dispatcher Marsha Petersen's incident: On March 14, 2012 at approximately 5:30pm, we received a call of a theft complaint from a victim calling from Home Lumber. This complaint eventually turned into a burglary and subsequent barricaded subject. As Dispatcher Petersen was speaking with the victim and preparing to send officers to the residence, another call came in requiring her to also dispatch the fire department to a brush fire out in the county. Marsha needed to get information on the location of the fire as well as send officers to the theft complaint. This was just the start of what would be an evolution of events that occurred over the next few hours. As the theft complaint progressed, officers quickly learned that the complaint was actually a burglary and that there were weapons stolen from a safe inside the residence. While officers were inside, they learned that the suspect may actually be in an upstairs apartment. Officers quickly set up a perimeter and asked you to request mutual aide. The fact that Marsha was alone in dispatch and able to handle the multitude of calls in commendable! Marsha made calls to the Walworth County Sheriff’s Department, coordinated safe routes of travel for other officers, assisted our officers on scene with the requests, answered questions from outside agencies that you had no information about, yet still answered them with helpful information, received calls from the media and received a call from the suspect. Marsha spoke to the suspect with a calm voice, was able to answer his questions without jeopardizing officer locations and eventually connected the suspect with a negotiator from the SWAT team. All of those efforts helped to lead to a peaceful resolution to the situation. Dispatch Supervisor Lentz and Dispatcher Gempler were both involved in one of the most horrific incidents Whitewater has ever seen. In October of 2012, we received a report of a stabbing that occurred in our city which involved two children. When unfortunate events such as this take place we often forget how many demands are required of the communications center. Heidi’s ability to calm the victim down and gather critical information while deploying emergency services and police officers simultaneously. Heidi was able to glean information from the sobbing and hysterical victim immediately, information that was difficult to understand and at times inaudible. Melody was able to relate steady confidence throughout the incident, but also in particular her compassion and understanding of the stress and fear a neighbor had in wanting to know when the suspect would be released. In the mist of chaos both remained professional, patient, and attentive to the countless callers and emergency needs set before them. The critical tasks that followed the initial call were endless, in the span of minutes they were asked to request emergency services, tactical teams, obtain mutual aid and field a flood of phone calls as they listened to the officers make a rapid entry into the residence in an attempt to rescue victims and apprehend a potentially armed suspect. Once it was determined the suspect had fled in a vehicle they began gathering information to formulate an attempt to locate notice, began preparing an Amber Alert notice and continued to work with outlying agencies and manage the non­stop telephone calls and radio transmissions. The communications center is the steady foundation that collects all the information and ensures any and all resources are quickly and efficiently deployed. We are lucky to have such dedicated and compassionate dispatchers there for all of us.