Josh Cellars Wine and The Gary Sinise Foundation have announced the first batch of winners in their effort to have the public support and honor their first responders with grants funded through the foundation. Five responders from across the country each received $10,000 for their organizations.
The first finalist receiving $10,000 is Bradley Saunders, a police officer with the Tustin (Calif.) Police Department. Prior to September 11, 2001, Saunders had a successful career with a large global investment bank, one of the largest tenants of the World Trade Center complex.
After surviving the terrorist attack, he was driven to become a police officer and joined the Tustin Police Department in 2002. Eight years later Bradley helped form the Tustin Police Foundation, which provides much needed equipment and training to the men and women of the department.
The foundation also supports programs which improve the relationship between the department and the community, and also funds trauma kits for patrol cars, meals for the homeless, officer/grade school students mentoring programs and more. In the community, Bradley is known for pouring his heart into everything he does – whether it is his role in the Patrol Division, as a Terrorism Liaison Officer or as an advisor to the foundation’s Board of Directors.
The next finalist receiving the award is Cynthia Swaim is an EMT with the Wellington EMS in Wellington, Texas. Cynthia was nominated by her son who witnessed firsthand his mother’s transformation over the past 18 months. A year and a half ago, Cynthia was using a cane to walk, was in bad health due to her weight, and at 49, felt more like 70.
After having gastric bypass, in October 2013, Cynthia started school to become an EMT. Cynthia graduated top of her class, and has been excelling as an EMT as part of the Wellington EMS ever since. Wellington, is a small rural community, with only three ambulances and a lot of outdated equipment.
The grant that Cynthia will receive will not only help the department but the entire community.
Also receiving an award is Dan Archer,the chief of the Roosevelt Volunteer Fire Company in Roosevelt, N.J. Dan joined the Roosevelt Volunteer Fire Company in 2006, which at that time only had three active members.
Shortly after, the then chief fell ill, meetings and drills ceased, and the company began to decline. After Hurricane Sandy, Dan stepped up to be Chief of the failing department, and since his election, has grown the company to 15 members.
Dan and his team have been actively fundraising and applying for grants to purchase a new fire engine and updated gear. The $10,000 will make a huge difference to a department with an annual budget of only $18,000.
A grant was given to David Wurtzel, a volunteer firefighter with 15 years of service in Narberth, Pa. David’s wife submitted him and detailed his contributions to his community via the non-profit he formed called The First Twenty (www.thefirsttwenty.org). After discovering that heart attacks were the number one cause of death for firefighters in the line of duty, David was inspired to create The First Twenty, the nation’s first-ever national fitness and wellness program for firefighters.
Using videos, self-monitoring tools, and training modules, The First Twenty addresses the unmet health and fitness needs of firefighters through collaborations with leading content providers, a strong team of fire service representatives and nationally recognized scientists. With this $10,000 grant, David will be able to continue to help firefighters focus on their health.
And lastly, Chief James King of East 52 Volunteer Fire Department in Celina, Tenn., also received an award. During James’ time as Chief of East 52 Volunteer Fire Department, he has helped to unite his team through some very trying circumstances. Not long after James became Chief, the water pump in the department’s only fire engine failed during a fire, and required $11,000 to repair. In order to get the engine up and running as quickly as possible, James and the assistant Chief took out a personal loan to repair the pump.
Though James and his team were able to pay off that loan through fundraisers in under a year and a half, during that time, the department’s only tanker truck’s motor failed, leaving them to find a replacement. Despite all of these setbacks, David continued to create an upbeat atmosphere which increased the number of volunteers helping out at the department. His entire team agrees that he is an outstanding Chief, well deserving of this recognition.