Putnam’s Heather Fox is Dispatcher of the Year

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Heather Fox: "first line of defense"

CARMEL – Putnam County 911 Dispatcher Heather Fox has assisted scores of people in need during her 15-year career as a dispatcher at both the county’s call-in center in Carmel and for 10 years prior in Dutchess County.

“Helping others has been my credo throughout my lifetime,” said Fox during an interview after the public servant learned she has been named as Dispatcher of the Year by the Association of Public Safety Communication Officials (APCO) and will be recognized in November at a banquet in Boston.

APCO International is the world’s oldest and largest organization of public safety communications professionals and supports the largest U.S. membership base of any public safety association. It serves the needs of public safety communications practitioners worldwide – and the welfare of the general public as a whole – by providing complete expertise, professional development, technical assistance, advocacy and outreach.

Fox described her job as a 911 dispatcher as being extremely fulfilling. “We are the first line of defense for a person in need by helping those when help is immediately required,” she said.

Fox called it “humbling” to have been acknowledged by her peers for a “job well done. I love to help people and to be of service to others. We are the first, first responders who must stay cool and keep our callers calm during all types of crises.”

Fox was named last year as communications specialist of the year by the county’s EMS Council. Fox also initiated the Red E. Fox program where she dresses in a fox’s costume and attends community events such as the Child’s Safety Fair reminding the public about when to call and when not to call 911.

Emergency Services Commissioner Ken Clair described Fox as a “true team player. She goes above and beyond the call of duty and does things not even asked of her. A great example was last year’s tornadoes that ravaged sections of our county as well as the damaging wind and snow storms resulting in massive power outages regionally. Heather jumped to the occasion and worked the Emergency Operations Center for days. Heather’s selection as Dispatcher of the Year is well deserved.”

Late last year when hurricanes decimated Florida, Heather used vacation time to serve with Team Rubicon, an international non-government organization that uses disaster response to help reintegrate veterans back into civilian life.

In May 2018, two dozen Rubicon volunteers converged on Putnam County to assist homeowners whose residences and property were damaged when tornadoes heavily damaged private dwellings.

Fox met Rubicon volunteers during their stay in Putnam County and although not a veteran, she decided to apply for an assignment.

“People thought I was crazy but the aches and pains, lack of sleep and cold showers were all well worth it,” she recalled.

Long-time colleague Robert Ridpath who retired from the 911 Center last month, described his former partner as a “true champion. It was my honor and pleasure to share many shifts with Heather for nearly a third of my career at Putnam County 911. Heather excels in an emotionally-hard field of emergency services.  Her compassion and focus on ‘customer service’ made every caller feel that their problem, however minor it may have been, was the most important thing she had to deal with at that moment in time; that it was a privilege to assist them in their need and that she would give her best to resolve whatever issue they had. When ‘crap’ hit-the-fan, she had an uncanny ability to calm panicked callers and give them life-saving pre-arrival instructions.”




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