The Home Safety Council® Appoints Nationally Recognized Leaders to Its Board of Directors

July 9, 2009

(WASHINGTON, DC) July 9, 2009 – The national, nonprofit Home Safety Council (HSC) has announced two new members to join its Board of Directors. Combined, Thomas F. Connaughton and R. David Paulison bring more than 50 years of emergency preparedness and life safety experience to the Home Safety Council’s leadership team.

“The Home Safety Council is thrilled to have two such exceptional individuals with extensive knowledge in the emergency preparedness and safety field join our Board of Directors,” said Meri-K Appy, president of the Home Safety Council. “We look forward to advancing our mission of preventing home-related injuries with the help of their leadership skills and safety expertise.”

Home Safety Council’s New Board Members

Thomas F. Connaughton
Mr. Connaughton, Director of Life Safety and Security Services (LSS) for Intertek Group Plc., is a seasoned certification and compliance professional. Since starting with Intertek as a Compliance Engineer in 1998, Connaughton has progressed through many positions and has successfully achieved several accreditations throughout his career. From product safety certifications to alarm testing and auditor services to Intertek’s latest endeavor, testing, inspecting and certifying alarm monitoring facilities and personnel, he has mastered a wide range of products and services. After successfully launching Intertek’s Life Safety and Security Services in North America, Mr. Connaughton will be responsible for expanding services into the European Union to meet growing industry demands abroad. With a strong background in compliance and the associated challenges faced by industry members, Mr. Connaughton is dedicated to the overall improvement of the life safety industry. He is an active participant in the National Fire Protection Association, Security Industry Association and Underwriters Laboratories Standards Technical Panels.

R. David Paulison
With a career culminating as the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Chief Paulison is a nationally and internationally recognized leader in emergency and disaster response and recovery. During his tenure as Administrator, he led the effort to restore FEMA’s reputation as a competent and credible agency, designed and implemented a new strategic vision for the agency and worked with private and public entities to provide more responsive and effective disaster assistance to states, communities and victims. Before his appointment as the Administrator of FEMA, Chief Paulison served as the Administrator of the United States Fire Administration where he oversaw the nation’s state and local fire service programs and implemented FEMA initiatives for emergency readiness, firefighter training and equipment. As the Director of Preparedness for FEMA, he oversaw more than one billion dollars in grant funding awarded to state and local governments to help prepare for natural and man-made disasters.

Chief Paulison began his career as a firefighter in 1971 and rose through the fire service ranks to become the Fire Chief of Miami-Dade County by 1992. As Fire Chief, he oversaw and directed a 1,900 person department and developed the Miami-Dade Fire and Rescue Department into one of the country’s leading fire departments, constructed 23 new fire stations and a new headquarters and state-of-the-art emergency operations center by garnering overwhelming support from county residents in favor of a major bond issue to fund the construction projects. Chief Paulison has also held leadership positions for several organizations, including the International Association of Fire Chiefs, National Fire Protection Association, American Red Cross Chapter of Miami-Dade County, Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association and FEMA’s Task Force on Technology Transfer. In 2004, Chief Paulison was awarded the Mason Lankford Fire Service Leadership Award at the Congressional Fire Service Institute’s annual celebration.

About Home Safety Council

The Home Safety Council (HSC) is the only national nonprofit organization solely dedicated to preventing home related injuries that result in nearly 20,000 deaths and 21 million medical visits on average each year. Through national programs, partnerships and the support of volunteers, HSC educates people of all ages to be safer in and around their homes. The Home Safety Council is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization located in Washington, DC.  For more information about the Home Safety Council, visit www.homesafetycouncil.org.

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