National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week

The week of April 8-14, 2012 is "National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week".  This is an opportunity to honor the women and men who serve as our public safety dispatchers.  They are the voice at the other end of the 911 call assisting a distraught caller. They are the voice behind the radio when police, firefighters, and medical personnel are responding to emergency situations.  Often these "invisible" courageous professionals are the forgotten component of public safety.

If you've ever been the victim of a crime, been in a collision, reported a fire or needed emergency medical help, you've called 911 and been helped by a telecommunicator, also known as a "dispatcher".  Not being visible or always recognized in the public eye, the critical role they play between the community and first responders is essential for every public safety call for service.  Our dispatchers are the direct link to our officers in the field.  They monitor the radios, computers, phones, and more, answering tens of thousands of calls from our community each year.

Telecommunicators Week began in California in 1981 and quickly grew to national recognition. Just ten years later, Congress designated the second full week of each April as a time to remember the critical role that dispatchers play in keeping us all safe.

We are fortunate to have some great Arcadia Police Department Dispatchers and we don’t take the time to say “thank you” often enough.  Captain Larry Goodman, our Administrative & Support Services Division Commander, oversees management of APD Dispatch operations and says, “We are blessed at Arcadia PD with outstanding public safety dispatchers who often are the lifeline to our officers in the field.  The service our dispatchers provide is second to none, which falls right in line with our Department motto of ‘Making a Difference’.”

Please join us in celebrating National Telecommunicators Week!