Item:
Title
Recognition of OES Director Jim Groves for Receiving the Colonel Phillips Nichlos Waters Award from the NC Emergency Management Association (10min)
Body
Date of BOCC Meeting: November 27, 2023
Request for Board Action:
Agenda Text
Durham County Office of Emergency Services (OES) Director Jim Groves was awarded the 2023 Colonel Phillip Nichlos Waters Award from the North Carolina Emergency Management Association (NCEMA) during the organization's 2023 fall conference. This award is presented to the local emergency management leader who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in their Emergency Management program and has contributed to the overall good and advancement of Emergency Management in the State.
Groves has served the residents of North Carolina for nearly 40 years. He is the inaugural OES Director, starting his tenure on March 1, 2020. Previously, Groves served 10 years as the Durham County Safety Manager/Emergency Management Coordinator from 1993-2003, then as the Fire Marshal/Emergency Management Director from 2015-2020. He began his public service career as a volunteer with fire and emergency medical services in 1984 at the Parkwood Volunteer Fire Department in Durham. During his time with Parkwood, Groves was certified as a NC Firefighter, Emergency Medical Technician, and Hazardous Materials Technician.
At Durham County, Groves helped lead the complex mergers that involved City and Durham County Fire-Rescue fire departments, and with EMS and the Fire Marshal/Emergency Management Departments into the Office of Emergency Services. These mergers have resulted in higher performing teams during crisis and emergency situations, all the while creating a more diverse and equitable workplace.
In 1993, Groves began his career in the Emergency Management profession when he became a County Safety & Emergency Management Coordinator. Inclusive of his duties was developing Durham County's first OSHA safety program as well as managing the Nor...
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