Your Hillsborough County government has received nationwide attention on the various programs you may use everyday. Check out award-winning, top-notch services that have placed Hillsborough County On the Map!

September 2007

Public Works Director Bob Gordon has been appointed to the accreditation council of the American Public Works Association (APWA). The council is comprised of six members with jurisdiction over all agencies in the United States and Canada. They are considered top leaders and subject matter experts in the field of public works. The Council is the final authority in determining whether a public works entity receives accredited agency status. Gordon will serve a two-year term.

The U.S. Paralympics has chosen Hillsborough County to be one of the 20 sites nationwide for the Paralympic Academy Beijing, part of the 2008 Olympics hosted in Beijing, China. This year-long academy will be operated through the Parks, Recreation & Conservation department’s BlazeSports Tampa Bay program. The Paralympic Academy Beijing provides a way for organizations to work together and connect with students (ages 12-18) who have physical disabilities. BlazeSports Tampa Bay currently has 200 athletes training locally in Paralympic sports. Hillsborough County will be connected to potential new athletes, positioned as the local leader of the Paralympic Academy Beijing program and highlighted as a national partner on this initiative. BlazeSports Tampa Bay was chosen because of its highly successful program.

February 2007

Hillsborough County Animal Services Receives National Grant – The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) selected Hillsborough County as one of the only four selected communities in the nation for a new outreach program. The ASPCA has made a three-year commitment to each of the selected communities to invest up to $200,000 for animal welfare efforts of those most at risk - shelter animals. The “Mission Orange” initiative’s goal is to identify the unique needs of each target community and implement programs that will result immediate, measurable and sustainable improvements for the animals. Hillsborough County was chosen in part for the excellent services and spirit of cooperation that already exists between several local animal agencies.

Hillsborough County Receives National Award for Innovative Funding Approaches – Partners for Livable Communities, a national, nonprofit leadership organization, gave Hillsborough County the “Innovation in Government Finance Award” for its innovative funding approaches for the Health Care program, the Library system and for initiating a strategic plan and budget process that links funds in the budget directly to eight major goals. Creating more efficient budgets to further strategic goals makes Hillsborough County a better place for its residents.

July 2006

Hillsborough County Fire Rescue was recently recognized as "one system doing it well" in Currents, the national magazine of the American Heart Association, for our protocols when responding to stroke victims. David Travis, Chief of the Rescue Division was cited in the article along with Dr. Charles Sand, an emergency physician with St. Joseph's Hospital who is on call by radio for serious medical emergencies that Hillsborough County paramedics may encounter in the field.

May 2006

2006 Mass Casualty Exercise - Hillsborough County has been conducting Mass Casualty Exercises for more than 30 years. However, because of the threat of a flu pandemic, the 2006 Mass Casualty Exercise developed a scenario involving a response to an avian flu pandemic. The functional exercise took place April 19 and involved about 2,000 participants from over 40 agencies. The Special Events Center at the Florida State Fairgrounds was used as an alternate treatment facility—Hillsborough County is the first county in the country to actually set up and test such a facility in a pandemic flue scenario. All 14 County Hospitals participated and Armwood High School provided about 850 students to act as victims.

March 2006

Fire Rescue Employee Saves Lifts Car to Save Child – On February 22, Station 7 firefighters responded to a call where a little boy had been run over and was trapped beneath a car. Captain Billy Riley was one of the members that responded with the fire company. Captain Riley’s actions earned him the distinction of hero that day as he single-handedly lifted the vehicle enough to allow the boy to be pulled to safety. Captain Riley went above and beyond the call of duty to save this child. As a result of his heroism, the story was on the local news and featured on the national program Inside Edition.

February 2006

County Television Station is Ranked Best in the Nation – Out of more than 500 entries nationwide in the Beacon Award Program, HTV22 was selected as the recipient of the Best Station for the 2005 Cable Access Guild Beacon Awards. This places HTV22 among the very best access television operations in the country. In addition, HTV22’s April Kellogg won for Best Host, and the production staff were finalists for Best Show Open, Best Public Service Announcements, Best Specialty Video, and Best Bulletin.

Comments from the judges included:

“The variety of programming provided by HTV22 is amazing. The variety of different show types(magazine, talk, Spanish language, psa’s, etc.) Is exceptional.”

“The meeting coverage looks great. The lighting and video quality in your board is excellent.”

“Tremendous information quality … top notch production quality … excellent on-air talent.”

“Overall, HTV22 is doing an excellent job bringing your community and government to your access station.”

Hillsborough County Emergency Management Coordinator Pete Dabrowski is charged with writing and distributing situation reports during a storm event. He was requested by U.S. Central Command to accompany them on a trip to the Public of Seychelles. The purpose of this trip was to advise the Government of Seychelles on the establishment, organization and operations of a National Emergency Operations Center.

December 2005

Hillsborough County Facilities Energy Manager Randy Klindworth developed an Access Database that has been identified by the National Association of Counties as a tool that counties across this nation should utilize in their efforts to conserve energy.