Matthew Garrity RPL
Manager of Emergency Services
I have been with Benton County since February 2003. I started out as a Call Taker and have been promoted up thru the ranks to Director, and have held that position for 4 years now. Just reciently I was promoted to Manager of Emergency Services which over sees CENCOM and The Department of Emergency management. Prior to that I worked as a Machinist for the Eaton Corporation in Shawnee Oklahoma for 18 years where I was leader of the Emergency Response Team which consisted of Fire, Medical, and Hazmat units with approximately 50 responders.
At the Eaton Corp, I was in charge of all training, resource management, and coordination with outside agencies. I joined the American Red Cross, as a volunteer, after the bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal building. I was soon promoted to leader of their Disaster Action and Assessment Team. While with the Red Cross, I coordinated all training and field teams during Disasters. Including 2 ice storms and numerous tornadoes, one of which was the May 3rd 1999 EF5 tornado that hit central Oklahoma. I am also a Certified CPR and AED instructor for the Professional Rescuer.
I have been a volunteer for Department of Emergency Management in Oklahoma and am currently a member here in Benton County. I have an educational background in Computer Science and Disaster Preparedness. I am an RPL and I am certified as an APCO (PTS1) Telecommunicator, Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD), Fire Communications, Certified Training Officer (CTO), and Communication Center Supervisor. I am an Instructor for Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) in each of these areas.
I am committed to continuous training to insure that we serve the citizens of Benton County and the State of Arkansas and the United States with pride and professionalism. Since becoming Director at CENCOM, we have revamped our entire training program which has improved our response times and reduced complaints. Our goal is continuous improvement in public safety communications. To obtain this goal I stress teamwork because it is an absolute must in this line of work, as no one person can do it all.
I am currently the President of the Arkansas APCO Chapter. I have been selected by Arkansas APCO and APCO international to organize, recruit, and head up the Arkansas Telecommunicator Emergency Response Taskforce (TERT) team. This team is in conjunction with the National Joint APCO/NENA Team, working with FEMA and Homeland Security, which will assist 911 dispatch centers in times of natural or manmade disasters. This is a nationwide effort to get all 50 States organized to have teams trained and ready to assist in large scale disasters as well as the protection of our own network on a local level. Our Motto Is “Who does 911 call when 911 needs help?” There are 6 States up and running and 36 in the beginning stages of implementation with more coming on board soon. It is my honor to serve as the State coordinator for this project. We have also started a local version of this team called STAR (Specialized Telecommunicator Advanced Response). This team will be used to help out PSAP’s in Benton County during disasters as needed and will man the Department of Emergency Management’s Mobile command unit (MCU1)
I am currently on several APCO Committees, Member Chapter Services Committee (MCSC), National Joint TERT Initiative (NJTI), Awards Committee, and the APCO Awards Taskforce. I am proud to be a part of the largest organization dedicated to Public-Safety in the world
On a more personal note, my wife’s name is Teresa we have 2 sons; Jason and Jody, 2 Daughters in-law; Chelsie and Tara, and 3 Grandchildren; Garrett 10 and Isabella 4 and Logan 12 months.