The Scottsdale Fire Department recently recognized outstanding employee and volunteer achievements during an annual ceremony.

“Our motto is ‘We Care for You.’ That is our baseline,” Fire Chief Tom Shannon said at the event in the Fieldhouse at Scottsdale Stadium.

“These individuals go above and beyond to exceed this expectation to meet the needs of our community.”

Those celebrated for being outstanding members or friends of the fire department were:

• Volunteer of the Year – Kathy Chicaferro for her work researching and sorting the cards representing those fallen in the attacks of 9/11. She also works with the car seat inspection program.
• Civilian Employee of the Year – Carla Scully for her work as the prevention administrative assistant managing customer phone calls, improving efficiency in the department and improving the Records Management System within the division.
• Firefighter of the Year – Brandon Crowther for his dedication to the EMS and medic precepting program.  He is also active in the training and wellness teams.
• Officer of the Year – Capt. Brian Dutcher for his commitment to the physical and mental wellness of the department. 
• Chief’s Award for Outstanding Service – Victor Ledo, facilities management coordinator, for his work ensuring SFD facilities are maintained.

Meritorious Service 

• Engineer Joseph Jesatko for jumping into action to respond to a housefire off-duty, rescuing a woman in a wheelchair trapped inside.
• Capt. Kelly Cavner for identifying high-risk facilities and providing onsite review with crews to ensure safety if emergencies arise.
• Doug Wilson, senior plan reviewer, for updating the fire code to the newest edition. 

Eddie Loggins Career Achievement Award 

• Capt. Jeff Abts will be concluding his 44-year career of serving the public in Scottsdale at the end of December. In that time, he has been a dispatcher, communication center manager, firefighter, engineer and captain
• Engineer Chris Ouzounis “has contributed so much to this organization from his time as an engineer, as a major contributor to the training and development team, and his most well-known role on the apparatus team,” a department release stated.

“Our award winners are an example of the dedication all of our staff have to the residents and visitors of Scottsdale,” Shannon said.

 “We are pleased to highlight the great work and honor the best of the best.”