President's Message - January 2018Kevin Starbuck, CEM, TEM, CPM - President
One of the best opportunities to network with emergency management professionals is coming up on March 4-7, 2018 at the EMAT Symposium in San Marcos (https://www.emat-tx.org/event-2700735). The EMAT Symposium planning committee has put together an outstanding line-up of training opportunities and presenters to gain from our mutual experiences and grow as leaders in emergency management. (To view the Symposium agenda, click here.) In addition, opportunities are available to work on Certified Texas Emergency Manager (TEM) credentials with EMAT leadership that has been involved in the updating of the process. I encourage each of you to consider joining EMAT at the symposium in San Marcos. Lastly, EMAT values your membership and participation in the organization. To meet the organizations fiscal needs, the Board has approved an increase in membership dues that takes effect in February… so there is still time to take advantage of the current membership levels. EMAT has put together “10 Great Reasons to Be a Member” that highlight some of the benefits of being a member of EMAT. Make renewing your membership or joining EMAT part of your New Year’s resolution. - Kevin Starbuck, CEM, TEM - Region 5Assistant City Manager City of Amarillo P.O. Box 1971 Amarillo, Texas 79105-1971 Work: (806) 378-3077 Cell: (806) 584-8845 Email: kevin.starbuck@amarillo.gov Office Expires: 2019 - Click here for Previous President's Message |
With the beginning of the New Year, emergency managers continue to face new challenges. Many of the communities along the Texas gulf coast continue to work through the long-term issues associated with recovery from Hurricane Harvey. As provided by Joseph Scanlon, “A disaster is not just a calamity but an opportunity, and a manager who is prepared can use it to alter the public agenda.” Recovery presents that opportunity to address resiliency in our communities to be better for the next disaster. As part of this, EMAT seeks to serve as a conduit for emergency management professionals to come together, sharing experiences and capturing the best practices used to improve our communities.