County Executive James N. Robey will be host today of Howard's Employee Recognition Ceremony, to be held at 5:30 p.m. at Ten Oaks Ballroom in Clarksville.
Colleagues, friends and family members are expected to attend.
Dora Rivera, recently named the county's Employee of the Year, will be honored along with other county employees for outstanding performance and commitment to public service.
Rivera works in the Department of Housing and Community Development's Grants Management Division, which helps clients obtain affordable housing.
She also maintains spreadsheets to track grant expenditures and payables, manages $1.7 million in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) HOME funds, and helps to prepare reports for HUD.
Rivera also acts as a translator to help the county's Spanish-speaking clients.
The fire department's Bureau of Life Safety will be honored with a Great Ideas Award for its crowd control program that teaches businesses, government employees and others how to maintain a fire-safe environment, foster a culture of safety and evacuate safely when necessary.
The program's team - Kevin Simmons, Michael Faith, Tim Diehl, Robert Fogle, Dean Mulvihill, Carlton Saunders, Jeff Shilling and Roberta Kelly - developed legislation that has been incorporated into the local fire code requiring a crowd-manager course for buildings occupied by 250 or more people, and created coursework and developed a forum to deliver the course.
Rachel Cesca of the Department of Recreation and Parks took second place in the Great Ideas Awards for her design of kiosks at Centennial Park. She also takes photographs of wildlife and creates a newsletter, Life in Centennial.
Ron May and Sam Schneider of the Department of Public Works' Bureau of Facilities took third place for developing a way to reduce mold and allergens in the Circuit Court building by installing ultraviolet light bars in the air handlers.
They researched techniques and fabricated removable racks for the lights, saving the county more than $40,000.
Unsung Hero Awards will go to Cpl. Michael Yetter of the Police Department's Vice and Narcotics Division for his work on the Joint Terrorism Task Force as a local liaison with the FBI and trainer of fellow officers in anti-terrorism skills; he is also helping to prepare a curriculum for school bus drivers.
Dale Oberly of the Department of Finance was cited for his wealth of knowledge about the functioning of his department and his willingness to share his skills with colleagues who seek his help.
John Peach of the Department of Recreation and Parks was awarded third place for his excellent work and for earning the loyalty of his staff. He supervises project planning, scheduling, landscape design and employee safety and helps wherever needed.
Customer Service Team Awards went to the food service at the Howard County Detention Center for preparing meals that meet budgetary constraints and nutritional standards for 250 inmates and 70 security staff members.
The team - Louise Martin, Ronald Gibson, Brenda McFadden, James Brown and Veronica Pointer - also prepares holiday meals and family picnics for employees.
In second place is the Recreation and Parks Licensed Child Care Administrative Team, for programs providing safe, reliable and affordable care for 2,500 children.
Team members are Barbara Moore, Joynel Young, Claudia Charity, Stephanie Kindrock, Glen Turner, Pam Gaughan, Matt Madera and Angela Kea.
Individual Customer Service Awards went to Robert Durham of the Department of Public Works; Brenda Mercado of Recreation and Parks; Kim Rodriguez of the Department of Citizen Services' Office on Aging; Esther Spencer of the Department of Housing and Community Development, Section 8; and Diane Wilson of the Department of County Administration.
