February 22, 2014 from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
at the Town Center Mall Parking Lot
corner of Glades Road & St. Andrews Blvd

Meet YOUR Firefighters & Paramedics

Live Action Firefighting Demonstrations

Learn About Health & Safety

Interactive Activities

Informative Displays

Child Safety Seat Installations

Photo Ops for Children with Firefighters

Free Blood Pressure & Cholesterol Checks

John Gonzalez, a member of Local 1560, and his wife Elena are taking part in the Boca Raton Community Garden. They are overseeing two plots, one personal and the other on behalf of The Boca Raton Firefighter and Paramedic Benevolent. In doing so they are enhancing the Firefighter & Paramedics of Boca Raton commitment to supporting the community. Produce generated in the gardens will be distributed to local food banks. Boca Raton firefighters were recognized in a recent email to all Community Garden participants, relaying the gratitude for our participation.

The Boca Raton FF/Paramedics local 1560 will be at the Green Market in Royal Palm Plaza on Saturdays from 8-1. They offer free blood pressure readings and answer any questions about the services BRFR provides. This past Saturday the event was a huge success! Members took roughly 50 blood pressures, passed out brochures, and answered many great fire and medical questions from the public.

Boca Raton, Florida: Boca Raton Fire Explorer Chief Nick Galiardo and Deputy Explorer Chief Sara Jacobson have completed the final phase of their schooling.  Last night they walked across the stage and received their certificates announcing their completion of the Paramedic program at Palm Beach State College.  This completes thetwo year long arduous process needed to begin a career in the Fire Service as Firefighter/Paramedics. They have already completed schooling and are state certified firefighters and Emergency Medical Technicians. Galiardo and Jacobson have been members of Fire Explorer Post #315 for almost 5 years attending meetings, classes and training and were able to ride along with Boca Raton Firefighter/Paramedic’s to emergency calls. This has helped them prepare for the fire academy, EMT and Paramedic school and their future career. Currently Assistant Fire Explorer Chief Chris Hope is preparing for his oral interview with a local fire rescue service.  Explorer Lieutenants Brandon Indiviglio, Sean Hallman and Explorer Mike Tozzo are finishing Paramedic school and will be ready to begin the testing process.  Since the post began in 2004 sevenformer Boca Raton Fire Explorers are working for Boca Raton Fire Rescue Services Department.

Boca Raton, Florida: Fire Chief Thomas R. Wood, members of Boca Raton Fire Rescue, family and friends came to 6500 Congress Avenue tohonor Raul Travieso, Assistant Fire Chief of Boca Raton Fire Rescue Services Department who retired after serving 39 years with the department.  The ceremony brought members from other departments of the city as well as Deputy Mayor Susan Haynie and Assistant City Manager George Brown.

Raul began his career in 1974 after proudly serving his country in the military.  He was promoted to Lieutenant on January 25, 1988.  On August 14, 1989 he became the departments Communications Lieutenant.  During his first three year tenure in this position he was responsible for bringingEmergency Medical Dispatch to our dispatch center. In 1992 Raul went back to a company officers position where he stayed until December of 1999. Returning to a 40 hours position Raul served as a Fire Inspector in the Fire & Life Safety Division. On March 5, 2001 he resumed his role as Communications Lieutenant.  He was promoted to Division Chief of Communications on September 30, 2003.  On October 23, 2006 he was promoted to Assistant Fire Chief of the Logistics & Support Division.  Finally, on October 5, 2009 Raul was transferred as Assistant Fire Chief of Administration, where he would finish his career.

 

In 1988, Raul became one of our first Critical Incident Stress Debriefing officers. In 1991, he took additional classes and became a Hazardous Materials Technician.  He was a CERT and CPR instructor.  In 1994 he performed CPR while off-duty where he saved the life of Mr. Donald Strassler.   Continuing on his quest for knowledge Raul would earn his Associates degree in 1998.

In 2007, he received high accolades for his work on 800 megahertz radio re-banding project. Also in 2007, he received a Department Innovation Award for the acquisition of our classroom furniture.   And in 2013 he received a Department Excellence award for coordinating the Holiday Gift Drive.  Raul has also been instrumental in honoring many firefighters that have gone before us. It was his project to create the display cases for retiree’s badgesand issue retired firefighter badges. We can also thank Raul for authoring our Department Appearance Policy which adds a professional look and standard to our department members. In 2009 Raul coordinated the 9-11 ceremony that Boca Raton hosted at the Mizner Park Amphitheater. In 2011, 2012 and 2013, Raul took the reins of organizing our Fire Expo held on the Florida Atlantic University campus.  Raul has served as the President of the Boca Raton Firefighter & Paramedic Benevolent Association and was instrumental in putting together and sharing his long term vision of creating a “Firefighter Memorial” for Boca Raton.  Raul’s most lasting legacy is theHonor Guard and the Pipes & Drums.  In 1992 Raul founded our Honor Guard.  The Honor Guard team took a First Place win at Fire Rescue East in 1998, and many other first place wins and honors throughout the years. The team has performed at local and state events as well as traveling throughout the country.  Under his expert tutelage Raul helped develop and train our award winning Fire Explorer Honor Guard Team.   Raul has served on the Board of Directors for the Florida Fire Service Honor Guard Association since 2003 and has been instrumental in helping to write protocols for Firefighter Line of Duty Death Services.  In August he started the Pipes & Drums Corps which continues to grow and gain notoriety throughout the state.  Raul’s accomplishments are a fitting tribute to his years of dedicated service to the department and our community.  He leaves a lasting legacy that will be seen at every event and ceremony.  Raul is a leader, a mentor, and a friend that will be truly missed.

Boca Raton Firefighters, Captain Phil Santa Maria and Firefighter Nat Nichols traveled to Prescott, Arizona to pay tribute to fallen firefighters. Santa Maria and Nichols were among thousands of brothers and sister firefighters who came from every state in the nation and around the world to honor the elite group of 19 wild land firefighters know as the “Hot Shots”. Outside Station 7 where the group worked firefighters and citizens erected a memorial of shirts, flags, flowers and signs to honor the fallen heroes.

Boca Raton, Florida: Boca Raton Fire Rescue Services A Team, Shea Miller, James Haag and Jeff Lazzeri took first place at the 13th Annual Randy Boaz ALS Competition. Eighteen teams from throughout Florida met at Miami Dade Community College Campus to take part in this year’s event. Each team handled three different scenarios that were given back to back. The scenarios were designed to test the team’s ability to handle a variety of basic and advanced medical issues and perform the correct medical procedures in the correct order in a determined amount of time.  The final scenario called Miller, Haag and Lazzeri to a party at a residence where they treated multiple patients. Injuries included a head injury, traumatic burns, dehydration and an arterial hemorrhage.

Boca Raton’s competition team placed first in 2007 and 2011 in this competition. In 2012 they placed second. This year Boca Raton had two teams in the top “5” with Boca Raton’s Team B placing 4th. Both teams are set to compete at the Clinical Conference on Pre Hospital Care in Orlando “Clin-Con” on July 16th.  Training for competitions takes dedication and commitment with members putting in hundreds of hours on their own time training. Teams come together and share ideas, and network bringing back valuable information to share with their co-workers. This helps the department deliver the best, efficient and effective emergency medical service to our citizens.

Boca Raton, Florida: On Thursday, May 30th and Friday, May 31st from 10am-5pm Boca Raton Fire Rescue will host their 6th annual paramedic competition, The 2013 Boca Raton EMS Challenge. Thirteen top teams from Miami to Port Orange will converge upon the 6500 Building, at 6500 Congress Avenue to test their medical skills. Each day the three person teams will have two different scenarios which may consist of heart attacks, trauma, water rescue, motor vehicle accidents, mass casualty incidents or pediatric patients just to name a few. These scenarios, written by paramedics and other health care professionals are designed to test each member of the team on all aspects of emergency medicine. On Thursday, from 10-5 one of the scenarios will be taking place at Boomer’s on Perimeter Road. Teams will be graded on a point system. Working together as a team, performing the correct procedures in the time allotted and following and performing the correct steps in the correct order will determine the winner. Winners will be announced and trophies awarded on Friday after the final scenario. For additional information on the competition please contact the coordinator , Paramedic Lieutenant Jeff Lazerri at 954-650-9282.