PRESS RELEASE

NBFAA Presents Leadership Awards for 2008
Winners Honored at the Annual Leadership Awards Breakfast
during Summer Conference

Irving, Texas, June 26, 2008 - The National Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA) presented the association’s annual Leadership Awards during the 2008 Summer Conference, including chapter awards, the President’s Award and leadership recognition awards of committee chairs and the association’s Executive Committee.  

This year’s chapter winners included:

NBFAA Chapter Newsletter of the Year
The Bellringer, Pennsylvania Burglar and Fire Alarm Association (PBFAA), was recognized for its 25-year commemorative issue, as well as for its consistency and information.  Since its launch in 1982, PBFAA has published a newsletter every month; in addition, the Bellringer tackles industry issues and covers both chapter and NBFAA news.

NBFAA Chapter Executive Director of the Year
Pat Shea Remes, Connecticut Alarm & Systems Integrators Association (CASIA), was recognized for her efforts in support of CASIA and NBFAA.  Specifically, she has been an ardent supporter of the National Training School (NTS), the Youth Scholarship Program and the association’s government relations efforts.  In addition to organizing10 membership meetings and an annual fundraiser for CASIA, she is active in NBFAA activities and has been a regular volunteer at NBFAA association meetings and events.

NBFAA Chapter President of the Year
Tim Creenan, New York Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NYBFAA), was recognized for his strong support of the industry and NBFAA.  He has served at the state level in several positions with the Western New York Alarm Association and the NYBFAA.  As New York’s president, Creenan has undertaken the development and implementation of a legislative initiative plan which resulted in the introduction and subsequent passage of changes to the New York licensing law. Creenan has been a long-time NBFAA supporter and has served on both the Board of Directors and as the Elections Committee chair.  He is also the chair of the IQ certification program.

NBFAA Chapter of the Year
The Connecticut Alarm & Systems Integrators Association (CASIA) was honored for consistently supporting NBFAA programs such as the Youth Scholarship Program and NTS. CASIA has been running NTS classes for 20 years and those classes are now recognized by the state of Connecticut as “related study” when applying for the state’s low voltage license.   CASIA is recognized as an approved provider of state-mandated continuing education for low voltage license holders.  Ranked high in both retention and recruitment, CASIA members are treated to special annual meetings each year that feature both information and entertainment, including the annual golf tournament and Fire & Code Officials Night. The members and staff have established an excellent relationship with public safety officials in the state, and they have an active government relations program at the state level, in addition to supporting national Government Relations efforts. They positively and publicly support new NBFAA efforts and programs. CASIA staff and leaders work cooperatively with NBFAA and follow policies and procedures that increase proficiencies and allow both associations to deliver a superior member experience.

In addition, two NTS awards for NTS Instructor of the Year and NTS Training Coordinator of the Year were announced. Those winners were:

NTS Instructor of the Year
Woody Woodham, senior technical manager for Honeywell, was honored for his work with the Mississippi Alarm Association, as well as in Alabama and in non-chartered states like Arkansas and Utah.  Since he became the education director for Mississippi, the number of training classes has increased from 1 to 2 to more than 20 classes a year. In addition to scheduling and teaching classes, he is a member of the NBFAA Education Committee and has been involved on sub-committees that have revised the Level 1 training course, and he is now assisting with the new troubleshooting course being developed by NTS.

NTS State Training Coordinator of the Year
Penny Brooks, Tennessee Burglar & Fire Alarm Association, was recognized today for her outstanding and consistent support of NTS training.  Through her efforts as both executive director and training coordinator for the Tennessee Burglar & Fire Alarm Association, members in Tennessee have access to valuable training that helps meet licensing requirements.   She consistently has demonstrated dedication to both the security industry and to the association.

Each year, the president of NBFAA is given the opportunity to present a distinctive award – The President’s Award – to recognize someone who has done something special during that person’s term in office. 

This year NBFAA President George Gunning recognized James Orvis, Security Solutions, Inc. “I am recognizing Jamie Orvis, not only for what he has done during my term in office, but for all of his hard work and dedication to NBFAA and to our industry. For the past five years he has served as the Alarm Industry Research and Educational Foundation’s treasurer and he has co-chaired, alongside Bart Didden, AIREF’s only fundraiser, the annual AIREF Golf Classic. Each of those five years he worked relentlessly to raise tens of thousands of dollars through this event to fund research that benefits our industry,” noted Gunning. 

NBFAA also presented leadership awards to volunteers for their service and dedication to the association during their terms as committee chairs. The following individuals were recognized:

Ron Petrarca - Apprenticeship
David Koenig - Budget/Audit and Investment
Mike Miller -Budget/Audit and Investment
George Bish - Bylaws
Paul Baran -Education
L.J. Lynes – Education
Tim Creenan - Elections
George De Marco -Elections
Greg Kessinger - Fire/Life Safety
Mike Meridith - Government Relations
Bill Cooper - Industry Affairs
Paul Carroll -  Investment
Karen Maples - Membership
Frank Burke -Public Relations
John Murphy - Standards
Rick Simpson - Standards
Ralph Sevinor  - Historical Preservation & Training Center
Charlie Darsch - Historical Preservation & Training Center

In addition to the committee chairs, NBFAA recognized Executive Committee members who are leaving their current positions or beginning a new term in office effective July 1.  Mike Miller, vice president/president-elect; John Knox, vice president; Dom D’Ascoli, vice president; Marshall Marinace, vice president and Scot Colby, immediate past president.

About NBFAA

NBFAA, a non-profit 501(c) 6 trade association, is the nation's oldest and largest organization dedicated to representing, promoting, and supporting the electronic life safety, security, and systems industry. Member companies specialize in a wide spectrum of services to commercial and residential consumers, including security and fire alarms, video surveillance, access control and monitoring. In cooperation with a federation of state associations, NBFAA provides government advocacy and delivers timely information, professional development tools, products and services that members use to grow and prosper their businesses. The NBFAA may be reached at (888) 447-1689 or on the Web at www.alarm.org.

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