ACTING CEO EDWARD PARKINSON: Welcoming new members to the FirstNet Board

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Dear colleagues,

I’m excited to share that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has made the 2018 appointments to our Board, filling five new seats and reappointing one Board member. We welcome the following members to our Board:

  • Richard Carrizzo, Chief of the Southern Platte Fire Protection District, Kansas City, MO, who also serves as lead fire representative on the policy Board that manages the region’s 911 system.
  • Welton Chase, Jr., Brig. Gen. (Ret.), U.S. Army, Army Information Technology (Signal), led the Army’s largest theater information technology organization supporting over 430,000 Army users across 81 data centers in 38 states.
  • Brian Crawford, Chief Administrative Officer, City of Shreveport, LA, responsible for the city’s fire, police and public works departments, who brings public safety experience as the former Fire Chief of Plano, TX, and Shreveport, LA; was a flight paramedic; and served as Commissioner and Vice Chair of the Louisiana State Police.
  • Billy Hewes, Mayor, Gulfport, MS, who’s played a key role in recovery operations from natural and manmade disasters.
  • Paul R. Patrick, Division Director, Family Health and Preparedness, Utah Department of Health, Salt Lake City, and past president of the National Association of State EMS Officials.

As you can see from their experience, our Board has the skills to support us through the next phases of FirstNet, with deep experience in public safety operations; cyber; telecommunications; and federal, state and local government. Because our Board members come from across the nation, they understand the needs of our stakeholders — whether in remote/rural or more urban areas.

I also want to take a moment to recognize the Board members who have completed their service to FirstNet, including Kevin McGinnis, a member of the Board from its inception and a strong voice for the EMS community, and Annise Parker, who served on the Board’s Committee for Public Safety Advocacy and helped us engage with our local government stakeholders. We’re incredibly grateful for all they’ve done for our organization and public safety as part of FirstNet.

With our Board now in place, let’s move full speed ahead to deliver on the promise of FirstNet. Together, we’re creating a broadband communications experience that transforms public safety operations – and saves lives.