Page 4 April 27, 2017 TORRANCE TRIBUNE The 2nd Annual Fire Department Appreciation and Awards Luncheon By TerriAnn Ferren The Torrance Fire Department boasts a Class One rating, and on Wednesday, May 3 at 12 p.m. at the DoubleTree by Hilton, the Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce, invites everyone to attend the 2nd Annual Torrance Fire Department Appreciation & Awards Luncheon. This event honors the community members and City staff who “support the mission of the Torrance Fire Department, and the brave members of the Torrance Fire Department who have distinguished themselves through outstanding performance above and beyond the call of duty and/or standard job responsibilities.” Torrance Fire Chief Martin Serna said, “It is truly inspiring and gratifying to honor the great efforts of our first responders. As all will say, ‘I was just doing my job,’ but this is a testament to their commitment to our public safety mission and services of others. But our Awards and Appreciation Luncheon is not focused on our firefighters. This is an opportunity to acknowledge the entire team. Those community members that we do not see and truly if it were not for them, our efforts would be limited. The team members that work in our hospitals that guide us, local businesses that provide the tools to complete our mission, City staff that truly make the system work internally and most importantly, the citizen that decided to get involved by performing CPR or comforting someone after an accident. We look forward to thanking this year’s honorees.” The awards and honorees for the 2nd Annual Appreciation & Awards Luncheon are as follows: The Community Award to Michelle Carabello, Cecilia Camarena, Jonathan Hanni and Dr. Eric Kaufer; the Mission Support Award to Jesse Fuentes; the Civilian Employee of the Year to John Kohler; the Special Recognition Award to TEMS (Tactical Emergency Medical Services) Medics Angel Meza, Alex Echeverria, Joel DeGuzman, Trevor Graves, Ryan Mendivil, Sean Kehoe, Chris Koch, Chris Culbert, and Chris Nader; the Award of Merit to Scott Arnold and Ryan Mendivil; the Chiefs Award to Blayne Baker; and the Firefighter of the Year to Bob Millea. The Business Recognition Award this year goes to the Original Giuliano’s Delicatessen & Bakery. Have you ever had to call 9-1-1? Firemen help us when we get into precarious predicaments. I often think of what former Torrance Fire Chief Scott Adams told me about the Fire Department. He called those predicaments “Ah-o’s.” He said the expression simply means that when an accident occurs and you need help to prevent an even worse scenario, you call 9-1-1 and the “Ah-o Squad” arrives. He went on to explain when a citizen gets into trouble and calls 9-1-1, the firefighter responding is dedicated to save, help, stop a tragedy, intervene and fix. They truly are exceptional public servants and much more than a fire department. I never forgot what former Chief Adams told me and his words resound to this day as true. The firefighters honored at the luncheon, and those who assisted, definitely answered to a higher calling. Each and every one of the awardees stepped up unselfishly, putting others ahead of their own safety, concern or importance. It is the brave men and women who truly give of themselves who are honored. When you were young, did you want to become a fireman when you grew up? My brother Tommy did. He and his friend Gary Barlough, who lived next door, would play for hours with their toy firetrucks, both wearing their red fire hats. Neither Tommy nor Gary ended up becoming firefighters, but they had a lot of fun when they were small mimicking the duties of the people who rode on the big red firetrucks with sirens blazing and off to the rescue. And I wouldn’t be truthful if I didn’t admit to once or twice taking a look at the fearless firefighters, dressed in their firefighter regalia rushing off on a call, helping someone who had dialed 9-1-1 for the Ah-o Squad. Last week, I asked Scott Villalva if he ever wanted to be a fireman and he said, “I think every little boy growing up wants to be a fireman or police officer just because you look up to them and you see them on the street and they drive cool cars. And they have all the sirens and run red lights! Every boy growing up dreams about being a fireman. I used to watch Emergency and CHiPs and that was very exciting.” Then I ran into Jacob Grajeda, who told me he never wanted to be a firefighter--he wanted to be a policeman “but my mom didn’t want me to ‘cuz of the major threat on them. Now I want to be a P.I. (Private Investigator). We will honor our Torrance firefighters and those who stepped up, as well as others at the 2nd Annual Fire Department Appreciation and Awards Luncheon next week. Each and every honoree has risen above the ordinary and will be recognized for their accomplishments. What is it within a person that instantaneously kicks in when dangerous incidents arise and they move toward a challenging situation, seeking how they can help--while others simply observe, or even flee? Bravery, training, character and heart must play a role. The honorees have demonstrated beyond a doubt the best qualities of us mere mortals. Congratulations, 2017 honorees! For further information and reservations for the luncheon, please access www.torrancechamber.com or call 310-540- 5858. See you there! • TerriAnn in Torrance Bob Millea, Firefighter of the Year. Jesse Fuentes, Mission Support Award. Scott Arnold, Award of Merit. Ryan Mendivil, Special Recognition Award. Blayne Baker, Chief’s Award. John Kohler, Civilian Employee of the Year. Trevor Graves, Special Recognition Award. Michelle Carabello, Community Award.
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