A Summit County emergency dispatcher has earned the state’s highest training recognition, while her colleagues swept nearly every category at Ohio’s premier public safety awards ceremony.
Samantha Fikes, a member of the Summit Emergency Communications Center dispatch team, received the “Trainer of the Year for the State of Ohio” award at the Gold Star Awards in Columbus on September 23. The recognition comes as part of a remarkable showing by SECC staff, who earned nominations across eight award categories.
The Gold Star Awards, hosted annually by Ohio chapters of the National Emergency Number Association and the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials, honor the state’s telecommunicators who serve as the backbone of Ohio’s 9-1-1 system.
SECC team members recognized include Jesse Fulks for Dispatcher of the Year, while Alison Mason, Lisa Maxwell and Victoria Teter earned the Dispatch Team of the Year nomination. Angie Mack received a Gold Star Certificate.
The center itself earned nominations for Dispatch Center of the Year and Center Technology Leadership Award. Leadership recognition went to Leigh-Ann Slaughter for Supervisor of the Year, David Best for Information/Radio Frequency Technologist of the Year, and David O’Neal for Communication Center Manager of the Year.
County Executive Ilene Shapiro praised the team’s dedication to public safety, noting that in emergency communications, every minute counts. The executive emphasized how the recognition reflects the center’s culture of excellence in serving county residents.
The comprehensive recognition across multiple categories highlights the professional standards maintained by Summit County’s emergency communications operation, which handles thousands of emergency calls annually for communities throughout the county.
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