Three of Decatur's Communications Officers L to R: Jennifer Guthrie, Lynette Hardmon and Terria Brown
Beginning Sunday, April 11th until Saturday, April 17, 2010 it is National Telecommunicators Week. National Public Safety Telecommunications Week has been set aside so everyone can be made more aware of the Communications Officers hard work and dedication, which provide a vital link to the public safety services on which we have come to rely every day. Each year, the second full week of April is dedicated to the men and women who serve as public safety telecommunicators. It was first conceived by Patricia Anderson of the Contra Costa County (Calif.) Sheriff’s Office in 1981 and was observed only at that agency for three years. Members of the Virginia and North Carolina chapters of the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) became involved in the mid-1980s. By the early 1990s, the national APCO organization convinced Congress of the need for a formal proclamation. Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) introduced what became H.J. Res. 284 to create “National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week.”
A big thanks to the City of Decatur’s Communications Officers for their hard work and commitment:
Terry Sims
Lynette Hardmon
Helen Marston
Terria Strickland
Cassandra Bradley-King
Antranette Robinson
Jennifer Guthrie
Doris Thompson
Darnell Rolling
