Welcome to the Desert Outreach at NEHA Conference
Many thanks go out to the Pima County Health Department Strategic Health Planning staff and Consumer Health and Food Safety (CHFS) staff for their support in providing a “Welcome to the Desert” table at the National Environmental Health Association’s (NEHA) 72nd Annual Education Conference on June 22-25, 2008.
Sharon Carson and Bret Sipe at Westin La Paloma
Strategic Health Planning staff coordinated the provision of individual DEET packages, sanitizing hand wipes, and sunscreen packets in addition to brochures and information sheets on desert hazards. CHFS staff was available at both conference locations, the Westin La Paloma and the Hilton El Conquistador, to welcome attendees and answer questions about the Tucson area.
Shawn Flanagan and Jack Kincaid at Hilton El Conquistador
The “Welcome” table was well-received by attendees at the conference and it was a great promotional opportunity for Pima County. Thank you to everyone who helped to make this a successful outreach!
Mike Gritzuk Receives WEF Award
by Laura Hagen Fairbanks
RWRD Director Mike Gritzuk, was the recipient of this year’s Arthur Sidney Bedell Award from the Water Environment Federation. Mr. Gritzuk received this prestigious award on April 30, at the Arizona Water Pollution Control Association’s (AWPCA) annual conference.
Vicki Scott, this year’s chair of the Bedell Award committee, discussed the committee’s considerations in naming Mr. Gritzuk the Bedell Award recipient for 2008. “Mike is larger than life in our industry; he is a force in our industry. He has always been a champion for research and he serves on a number of committees on the national level. His contributions to the water and wastewater industries in Arizona, especially in Phoenix and in Pima County are immeasurable.“
The Bedell Award was established to acknowledge extraordinary personal service to a Member Association. The award is named for the second President of the Federation, who exemplified its purpose by his long devotion and service to his own member association.
Mr. Gritzuk’s personal service to AWPCA and to the water and wastewater sectors is impressive. Some of the accomplishments cited during the presentation of the award included Mr. Gritzuk’s service on the AWPCA Board of Directors, his service on the AWWA Board of Directors and his service on the WateReuse Association. Also noted was his service on several national committees, including the Department of Homeland Security Water Sector Coordinating Council. In addition to the Bedell Award, Mr. Gritzuk has been the past recipient of the Fuller Award, AWPCA’s Environmental Stewardship Award, and the Sludge Shoveler Award.
Mr. Gritzuk’s experience in the water and wastewater sectors in the State of Arizona include seventeen years as Director of the City of Phoenix’s Water Services Department and nearly three years as director of the Pima County Regional Wastewater Reclamation Department. His work in the State of Arizona has had a profound effect on the agencies he has worked for, but more importantly on the citizens he has served in carrying out his responsibilities. RWRD applauds AWPCA for presenting Mr. Gritzuk with this well-deserved commendation.
FDNY Dream Bike Symbol of Healing
by John Allison
John Allison who presently works for Pima County Telecom moved here from New York City. John was a Firefighter in Lower Manhattan for 7 years and later worked for 9 years at Kidder, Peabody & Company, Inc., a brokerage firm with offices on the 72nd floor of Tower 1 in lower Manhattan.
“After 9/11 I had to do something,” said John, “I just wanted to be there in NYC with my friends and family and see what I could do to help.” John got his opportunity to do something when his good friend and 22 year veteran of the NYC Fire Department, Michael Wernick, asked him to film a story from his firehouse about a lost fireman and a motorcycle restoration.
Michael’s firehouse is in Lower Manhattan and his ladder 9 truck was among the first to respond on 9/11. The guys from the firehouse arrived at the north tower and started climbing up the stairs. Michael made it as far as the 27th floor when the building shook violently. He found out much later that it was the south tower collapsing. After the shaking in the north tower stopped, they were told to exit the building, so they did in a calm manner, unaware of the collapse of Tower 2 and the eminent collapse of Tower 1.
Michael made it out by a block before he was blown off his feet trying to escape the second collapse. Ten firefighters from his firehouse did not make it out in time. They gave their lives trying to help others. One of those firefighters lost was Gerard Baptiste.
Michael’s firehouse in Lower Manhattan and his ladder 9 truck was among the first to respond on 9/11.
Two weeks before 9/11, Gerard had purchased an old beat up rusty Honda 750 motorcycle for $100 of the street in Manhattan. It was his dream to restore the bike, but he never had the chance to do so. Then, with help from firefighters, motorcycle enthusiasts, corporations and 15 months of restoration work, Gerard’s beat up old rusty motorcycle was transformed into the FDNY Dream Bike.
John Allison got his chance to tell this story in his documentary film, FDNY Dream Bike. “I was determined to tell this story. It was so amazing to me the way in which everybody was working together, helping each other, and helping heal the pain of such a tremendous loss.”
Firefighters from the firehouse in lower Manhattan told John that they felt honored that he would even consider telling Gerard’s story. So John took it upon himself to raise funds for the production. With help from local businesses and friends in Tucson, John Allison along with Tim O’Grady, his Access Tucson Digital Video teacher, headed out for seven days in New York City to capture the story.
They came back to Tucson and put together a 48 minute documentary film that tells the story. The film had a premiere in Tucson, AZ and ran for six weeks at a Theater in NYC. The film received a 3 star rating from the New York Times, The Daily News, the New York Post and Newsday.
Today the FDNY Dream Bike is on exhibit at The Firefighting Museum in Hudson, NY. In the future there are plans for the Dream Bike to be moved to the World Trade Center Memorial Museum which is planned to open in 2010.
The documentary film is distributed by Vanguard Cinema and can be purchased through several on-line DVD stores or you can find John and ask for a copy of the DVD.
Back to the top
