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Florida Fire Chiefs' Association
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Current News and
Special Announcements
CFFCA July Luncheon
FFCA EDC Naples Venue
Sunday, July 17th, 2022
The CFFCA July Luncheon was held on-site
at the FFCA EDC in Naples, FL at the Naples Grande Beach Resort venue.
Thirty-four [34] were in attendance to enjoy the good fellowship.
Informal presentations and greetings were given by CFFCA President Miller,
FFCA President Doug Riley, FFCA East Central Director Chuck Bogle, Foundation
Chair Jim White, FFCA CEO Ray Colburn, and FSFMO Director Julius Halas.
Special thanks were extended to Ngoc Huynh at FFCA, Hospitality Staff at
Naples Grande, and special acknowledgments to our lunch co-sponsors: Bennett
Fire Products, CORE, Municipal Emergency Services, Municipal Fire Equipment
Co., and REV RTC.
All special guests and lunch co-sponsors were presented with a CFFCA logo
tile...
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CFFCA Business Meeting and Program
June 9th, 2022
"Emergency Management Operational Update"
The CFFCA monthly luncheon and program held
at the Hilton Altamonte Springs on Thursday, June 9th, 2022 with 44 in attendance.
PROGRAM: Emergency Management
Presenter: Alan Harris, Seminole County Emergency Manager
Several EM managers were in attendance from City of Orlando, City of Altamonte
Springs, Seminole County, and Lake County...
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CFFCA Business Meeting and Program
May 12th, 2022
"Trench Rescue Operational AAR"
The CFFCA held its monthly business meeting
and program on Thursday, May 12th, 2022 at the Hilton Altamonte Springs
with 45 in attendance.
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The Program was an Operational Incident After-Action Report on a Trench
Rescue incident that happened on a road construction site in Lake
County. The presenters [pictured above] were LCFR Division Stephen Davis
[Special OPS and Training] and Special OPS Lieutenant Andrew Boris. Presentation
consisted of a short video as a visual incident overview, operational methods
and techniques employed, challenges faced and lessons learned.
President John Miller [pictured below with Ocoee FD Command Staff] was
recognized on his recent retirement serving 7 years as the Fire Chief. of
Ocoee Fire Department.
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Please browse our Gallery Page to view all photos...
CFFCA Business Meeting and Program
April 14th, 2022
"Autism Awareness for First Responders"
The CFFCA held its monthly meeting and program
on Thursday, April 14th, 2022 at the Hilton Altamonte Springs.
The Program was "Autism Awareness for First Responders" presented by
Daniel Morales, City of Orlando Fire Department. Twenty-five were present
for a very informative program overview on how first responders should
deal with incidents involving autistic patients.
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Please browse our Gallery Page to view all
photos...
CFFCA HOSTS FL-USAR-TF4
AFTER-ACTION REPORT
SURFSIDE CONDO COLLAPSE
March 24th, 2022
The CFFCA hosted the FL-USAR-TASK FORCE
4 TEAM for a 3-hour presentation of their After-Action Report on operational
overview and lessons learned on the Surfside Condo Collapse.
Sixty-seven [67] chief officers from throughout the Central Florida
area were present at this very informative AAR overview. The presentation
speakers were District Chief Walter Lewis [OFD] and Retired Fire Chief
Dave Downey [Statewide Deputy Coordinator SERP].
Key Topics of Discussion consisted of Initial OPS Considerations,
Sustaining Long-Term Events, What Can the FL-USAR System Do?, and How Fire
Chiefs Can Make the Difference?
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See PHOTO GALLERY to view all photos...
CFFCA / FFCA
Joint East Central Regional Meeting
March 10th, 2022
The CFFCA and FFCA held its joint East Central
Regional Meeting at the Hilton Altamonte Springs on March 10th, 2022
with 80 attendees present.
Meeting Highlights were as follows:
Installation of New CFFCA Officers with Oath of Office administered
by FFCA President Douglas Riley [Chief Will Watts - Vice President;
Chief Sean Wylam - District 1 Director ORANGE; Chief Michael Peters
- District 2 Director SEMINOLE; and Retired Chief Matt McGrew - District
5 Director RETIREES.
CFFCA President presented the CFFCA Chief Craig Haun Leadership
Award for 2020 to Retired Fire Chief Matt McGrew. See
Media Release.
FFCA East Central Regional Meeting facilitated by FFCA EC Director
Chief Chuck Bogle with State Officials and FFCA Officers providing informative
updates from their areas of responsibility.
Many THANKS to our co-sponsors: Ten 8 Fire & Safety, LLC,
Public Consulting Group, and United Badges Insurance Services.
Date(s): March 10th, 2022. Album by Central FL Fire Chiefs' Association.
Photos by Bruno. 1 - 84 of 84 Total. 2 Visits.
CFFCA Meeting / Program
Election of New Officers, Award Presentations,
Retirees Round-Up, and HAZ MAT Awareness
February 10th, 2022
The CFFCA held its monthly business meeting and program at
the Hilton Altamonte Springs with 39 in attendance.
The program was "Human Trafficking from a Personal Perspective"
presented by Tina Kadolph, Co-founder and President of Love Missions
Global.
Chief Craig Radzak [CFFCA VP] was presented Board Appreciation
plaque and Fire Chief Retirement Plaque by CFFCA President John Miller.
Chief Will Watts, CFFCA Vice President and Chief Sean Wylam, CFFCA District
1 Director were also recognized by President Miller for their interim
Board appointments.
A special thanks was extended to our corporate partner CORE
for restocking us with hand sanitizers for the tables...
Please visit our Gallery Page to browse meeting photos...
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Annual CFFCA Corporate Partner
Holiday Appreciation Luncheon
On Thursday, December 9th, the
CFFCA held its Annual Corporate Partner Holiday Appreciation Luncheon at the Hilton - Altamonte
Springs with fifty-eight [58] in membership attendance.
Each corporate partner was presented with a custom ceramic
logo tile in recognition of their partnership level: 1st Alarm, 2nd
Alarm, and 3rd Alarm.
Christmas holiday music was provided by PianoParty LLC
with Katie Pinder Brown as the pianist. A slide show was also presented
CFFCA
2021 Year in Review.
Please visit our Gallery Page to enjoy all meeting event
photos.
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CFFCA Program Presentation on NFPA 1851 PPE and the
Impacts of Changes 2020 Edition
Monthly CFFCA Meeting / Program held at the
Hilton Altamonte Springs with 35 in attendance including a special visitor
from Phoenix FD [AZ] - Jason Miller, Captain, who was accompanying
our program speakers.
Chaplain's message was about Thanksgiving and Veterans
Day followed by the invocation and Pledge of Allegiance. All Veterans
in attendance were given a complimentary lunch pass at the door with
an anonymous donor underwriting those costs.
Distinuished Service Awards were presented to Maitland
FR [ISO Class 1], Lake Mary FD [Accreditation], and Mount Dora FD
[Accreditation]. CONGRATS are in Order!
PROGRAM: NFPA 1851 PPE and Impact of Changes in the
2020 Edition presented by Tonya Herbert, Florida PPE Services
and Jim Davis, NFPA Tech Committe [DECON].
Please go to our GALLERY TAB to browse all
photos...
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CFFCA Reinstates
Annual 3rd Alarm Corporate Partner SHOWCASE
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The CFFCA reinstated its annual 3rd Alarm Partner
Showcase on Thursday, October 14th at the Hilton Altamonte Springs.
Fifteen [15] 3rd Alarm Corporate Partners participated
in the showcase marketing their services and products.
Showcase was very well attended with eighty-three
[83] present...
Go to
the GALLERY to browse all showcase photos.
9-11 Twenty Years of Remembrance
Memorial Rededication
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The CFFCA in conjunction with the Hilton
Altamonte Springs held a 9-11 Memorial Rededication Ceremony
"Twenty Years of Remembrance" on Thursday, September 9th at its
regularly scheduled meeting at the Hilton.
Numerous agencies, officials and dignitaries
were present at this special event. We Shall Never Forget that
"All Gave Some and Some Gave All".
Special Thanks to the Seminole County FD Honor
Guard and Orlando Firefighters Pipe & Drum. Our gratitude
is also extended to our 9-11 Memorial Rededication Ceremony
lunch sponsors:
CORE Construction Services
Municipal Equipment Company [MECO]
Municipal Emergency Services [MES]
United Badges Insurance Services
Please see our GALLERY for all photos...
Lessons Learned
CFAI Accreditation Deferment Process
The CFFCA monthly business meeting and program
was held at the Hilton - Altamonte Springs on Thursday, August
12th, 2021. The program presentation was "Lessons Learned - CFAI
Accreditation Deferment Process". The program was presented by
Maitland Fire Rescue Fire Chief Will Watts, Deputy Chief Chris Morton,
and special guest CPSE director Karl Ristow [pictured below]. Forty-four
[44] chief officers were in attendance with 18 agencies represented
. Our FFCA East Central Regional Director - Chief Chuck Bogle was
also in attendance for the presentation.
Please visit our Gallery Page for ALL
meeting photos...
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on Photo to Enlarge]
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Dr. Jimmy Knott Speaks at July 8th,
2021 CFFCA General Membership Meeting
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Dr. Jimmy Knott, Teaching Pastor - First
Baptist Church Orlando, delivered a dynamic audience-engaged
message during a presentation on "It's All About Leadership"! His message was: Be a leader that is worth
following. Topics discussed included General condition of leadership in America,
the importance of leadership, ability to lead and its impact on influence,
success, and effectiveness.
Please visit our Gallery Page for meeting
photos...
CFFCA HOSTS
FFCA East Central Regional Meeting
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to Enlarge]
On June 10th the CFFCA hosted the
FFCA East Central Regional Meeting
at the Altamonte Springs Hilton.
Fifty-four were in attendance for
this regional update. Due to COVID-19, this was the first
face-to-face meeting with our FFCA officers and State Officials
since 2019. The update included reports from the FFCA leadership,
FFCA Foundation, State Fire Marshal's Office, State Fire College,
and SERP.
Many thanks to the FFCA meeting sponsors
Ten 8 and United Badges Insurance Services.
Go to our Gallery Page to browse
meeting photos...
CFFCA Meeting / Program May 8th,
2021
The
CFFCA monthly "mask to mask" meeting was held on-site
at the Altamonte Springs Hilton. The program "Best Foot Forward
- Pedestrian Safety" was presented by Roni Wood, Community
Outreach Specialist, with 30 in attendance.
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CFFCA Meeting / Program April 8th,
2021
The
CFFCA monthly "mask to mask" meeting was held on-site
at the Altamonte Springs Hilton. The program was presented
by the Central Florida Disaster Medical Coalition with 25 in
attendance.
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NEW CFFCA OFFICERS INSTALLED
The
Newly Elected CFFCA Officers for 2021 were given
their Oath of Office during an installation ceremony held
March 11th, 2021. The CFFCA Chaplain Rick Spence officiated
the installation ceremony and administered the Oath of Office.
The new officers, effective April 1st, are as follows:
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Chief John Miller - President
Chief Will Watts - District
1 Director [Orange County Rep]
Chief Jim Walls - District
3 Director [Osceola County Rep]
CONGRATS are in Order!
CFFCA outgoing District 1 Director [Orange
County Rep] Chief Matt McGrew was recognized for his
distinuished Board service 2019-2021.
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MARCH 2021 UPDATE
It has been going on a very long year since
we last met face-to-face at the Hilton due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. It is now time to come back together
under a "new normal" set of health and safety protocols.
In this regard, please
MARK and SAVE the date of March 11th,
2021 for on-site "Mask-to-Mask" meeting at the Hilton.
Meet and Greet the newly appointed Fire Chiefs here in Central
Florida.
Two-Part
Program: Installation of Newly Elected CFFCA Officers
and CFFCA Agency Chiefs Roundtable Updates.
More detailed information
will be forthcoming via membership email notice.
FEBRUARY 2021 UPDATE
The February 11th, 2021 CFFCA
Business Meeting at the Hilton has been CANCELLED.
The Board will be discussing a more realistic restart
date of March 11th, 2021. Please
MARK and SAVE the date of March 11th, 2021 for on-site meeting
at the Hilton, dependent on the pandemic situation and vaccination
progress.
DECEMBER 2020 UPDATE
Greetings and hope this finds all our members,
their families and organizations safe and well...
The annual December
Christmas social luncheon has been cancelled with great
disappointment, but it is best to just ride out 2020 and
start fresh in 2021...
To say the year 2020
has been a very challenging and stressful time for
us all would be an understatement, but we stayed the course
in a gallant effort to provide those mission critical services
to each of our communities here in Central Florida in an exemplary
manner. Although we have not been able to meet for our monthly
meetings since this past February due to the COVID-19 pandemic,
we did successfully hold four [4] ZOOM meeting presentations
for our membership and we hope that those virtual gatherings served
an informative purpose to all who were able to join and participate.
In light of the above,
the Board will be considering the restart of our
monthly business meetings on site at the Altamonte Springs
Hilton on Thursday, January 14th, 2021 at 11:30am so please
MARK and SAVE on your calendars for your attendance – pending
final Board approval. The CFFCA and the Hilton will provide a
safe meeting environment following all CDC guidelines for social
distancing, face coverings, food prep, banquet services, and
sanitation practices.
Until our “Mask-to-Mask”
January meeting, CFFCA President John Miller and
the Board extends a warm and safe Christmas/New Year holiday
season to all... Stay well and safe, and God Bless!
NOVEMBER 2020 UPDATE
Our intent to restart our on-site business
meetings at the Hilton did not pan out
due to mass gatherings and social distancing guidelines
were still in place. The Board of Directors will revisit
this subject matter under the State’s COVID-19 Phase 3 Re-Opening
Plan to determine when to consider a safe restart of our monthly
meetings on-site at the Hilton. This has caused us to cancel
the Annual 3rd Alarm Partner Showcase and potentially our December
Christmas Social and Corp Partner Appreciation. The Year 2020
has certainily been challenging time for us all and continues to
be a moving target at this point.
Once determined
by the Board, please rest assured that on-site meetings
will be conducted in strict accordance with the most current
CDC or local authority guidelines concerning group gatherings
and social distancing. The Hilton is and remains well-prepared
to offer a venue that is safe with the utmost social distancing
compliance measures in place.
[RECENT ACTIVITES RECAP]
The CFFCA held a
ZOOM Tele-Conference "State of Florida and Regional
COVID-19 Update" on June 11th. It was well attended with
61 conference call attendees. State, Regional, and Local
officials provided an update as to the COVID-19 impact on
operations, current status, and future plans.
On July 16th hosted
a virtual tele-conference ZOOM meeting which focused
on COVID-19 lessons learned and best practices within
our 4-county area of Orange, Seminole, Osceola, and Lake.
Each District Director reported out on their respective
county districts concerning COVID-19 operations, including
special “best practices” presentations from Orange County Fire
Rescue, Orlando Fire Department, Lake County Fire Rescue, and
Groveland Fire Department.
On September 10th,
The CFFCA hosted another ZOOM virtual presentation
on “Coping with Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19” with
the presenter being Kendra Davies from Stellar Life Coaching.
STATE OF THE STATE AND REGION
COVID-19
UPDATE TELE-CONFERENCE
JUNE 11TH,
2020 [11AM - 12:30PM]
On June 11th, 2020 the CFFCA, in comjunction
with the Florida Fire Chiefs' Association
and Valencia College School of Public Safety, is
hosting a 90-minute Tele-Conference on the State of
the State and Region COVID-19. This virtual meeting via
a ZOOM LINK will provide for a safe social distancing environment
for the CFFCA / FFCA participating members.
The tele-conference
informational flyer with LINK will be emailed to
the CFFCA membership and the FFCA East Central Region members
on or about Friday, May 29th, 2020. This virtual meeting
will serve as the FFCA EC Regional Update that was cancelled
this past March due to COVID-19.
As we move
forward with ramping back up our monthly business
meetings, we will do so in a safe and responsible manner
in cooperation with the Hilton.
For planning
purposes, the membership should anticipate another
virtual meeting during July with hopes that our on-site
business meetings at the Hilton starting back up in August,
but only if safe to do so and in accordance with any CDC
or local authority guidelines.
CFFCA PRESIDENT SUSPENDS ALL
CFFCA MONTHLY MEETINGS AND RELATED GATHERINGS INDEFINITELY
Effective March 12th, 2020
The CFFCA hopes and prays that our agencies,
their personnel, and family members remain
safe and vigilant during this unprecedented time
in our history. God Bless all of you for your front-line
valor and tireless service to your communities. The illustrative
graphic above speaks for itself without any further editorial
needed. We also appreciate our corporate partners for the
continued assistance with special needs and keeping the supply
chain moving wherever possible.
In response
to the COVID-19 national pandemic, CFFCA monthly
meetings and other related group gatherings, including
the COLS-II symposium that was scheduled during the
month of May, have all been indefinitely suspended.
The BOARD
will continue to meet monthly via Go To Meeting conference
call method to insure that CFFCA business matters are
carried out. The Board will determine a very measured approach
following all subsequent CDC guidelines on how the CFFCA
may conduct business safely in the future once this pandemic
is behind us.
Should
any of our firefighters or members contract COVID-19,
please know that they will remain in our daily thoughts
and healing prayers for a full and healthy recovery.
Our CFFCA Chaplain stands ready to assist if and when called
upon or the need arises.
God Bless
America!
Sincerely,
John Miller
CFFCA
President
CFFCA/FFCA
JOINT EAST CENTRAL REGIONAL MEETING 03/12/2020
CANCELLED
In
response to the dynamic and changing COVID-19
pandemic and in an abundance of precautiom for
our members and guests, this meeting has been CANCELLED
until further notice. Further information will be forthcoming
through membership email concerning future meetings
and events.
2020
CFFCA Retiree Group Photo
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on photo to enlarge]
Photo collectively represents over 447 years of career
service. Thank you for your selfless service to our
Central Florida Communities.
CFFCA MEETING / PROGRAM
February 13th, 2020
The monthly meeting of February 13th served
as our annual CFFCA Retiree Round Up
[photo above], Election of New Officers, and
a very informative program by CORE on Clean Public Safety
Building.
Newly Elected Officers in accordance with bylaws are:
Vice President - Chief Craig Radzak [re-elected]
District 2 [Seminole] - Chief Frank Cornier [re-elected]
District 4 [Lake] - Chief Mike Swanson [re-elected]
District 5 [Retirees] - Retired Chief Charlie Chapman
The above officers will be duly sworn-in and installed
at the CFFCA March 12th, 2020 General Meeting.
The program "Clean PSB" presented by CORE focused
on the industrey collaborative that is addressing
the design and construction needs of fire stations to
safeguard fire rescue personnel from the exposures of bio-hazard
waste and carcinogens.
[Click on photo to enlarge]
CFFCA MEETING / PROGRAM
AGENCY ROUND TABLE BRIEFINGS
January 9th, 2020
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!
The CFFCA's first business meeting / program of
the new year, January 9th, 2020, was held at the
Hilton Orlando/Altamonte Springs. This meeting
served as an Agency Round Table Briefing for the membership.
Each Agency Chief or their Represenative orally
presented an update briefing on each of their organizations.
Eighteen [18] agencies provided a very informative
update on their respective agencies to the 48
members in attendance.
[Click on image to enlarge]
Thank you to the following agencies that participated:
Sanford FD
Kissimmee FD
Lake Mary FR
St. Cloud FR
Orlando FD
Clermont FD
Seminole County FD
Apopka FD
Ocoee FD
Winter Garden FR
Orange County FR
Forrestry Services
Maitland FR
Lake County FR
Eustis FD
Mount Dora FD
FFCA SERP
FSFMO FF Safety Section
Remaining meeting / program photos can be
found on the GALLERY page.
CFFCA MEETING / PROGRAM
Corporate Partner Appreciation
December 19th, 2019
The CFFCA held its Annual Christmas Luncheon
and Corporate Partner Appreciation on December
19th, 2019 at the Hilton Altamonte Springs with
53 in attendance.
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Each Corporate Partner was recognized by CFFCA
President John Miller and presented with a custom
CFFCA logo ceramic tile for their gracious support
throughout the year.
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to enlarge]
CFFCA LEADERSHIP SEMINAR
"Maintaining Leadership Credibility"
October 22nd, 2019
Dr. Larry Ritcey - Presenter
The CFFCA held a 1-Day Leadership Seminar
at the Hilton on Tuesday, October
22nd, 2019 with 47 officers in attendance
and 21 agencies represented.
Thank you to our Seminar Co-Sponsors:
Tony Apfelbeck
Fisher Safety
CORE Construction Services
North American Fire Equipment Company
Please visit our Gallery for all seminar
photos...
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CFFCA 9-11
Memorial at the Hilton
Updated with the addition of the
Florida FF LODD art piece entitled:
"The Final Alarm"
Go to GALLERY PAGE to view all photos
Florida
Fallen FF Memorial Unveiling
State
Capitol Building - Tallahassee
April 1st. 2019
FFCA/CFFCA President John Miller
attended the Fallen
FF Memorial Ceremony at the State Capitol
where the newly dedicated Fallen FF Memorial
was unveiled in the presence of hundreds of
fire officials, dignataries, and surviving family members
of the fallen.
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[Photo
L to R: Ray Colburn - FFCA
CEO, Chief John Miller - FFCA/CFFCA President,
Chief Julie
Downey - FFCA Fire Chief of the
Year, and Chief Otto Drozd - 2nd Vice President
IAFC.]
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Please visit our Gallery to see
additional photos....
[Click on Below Image for
LINK to VC-SPS]
[Click on Above Image
for LINK to VC-SPS]