Barren-Metcalfe Emergency Communications Center 30th anniversary celebration was held Friday, March 1st. While rain poured outside it had no chance in dampening the sunny bearing of Beverly Harbison, director of the center, who was abuzz welcoming guests from all parts of the community that turned up to show their support.
Glasgow Mayor Henry Royse was among the attendees, “This is the first responders hub, this facility and the people that work here are the central dispatch point for all of our emergency services,” Royse said. “Not just to get them on the scene but to escort them through whatever the responder is into.” Royse stressed the importance of timely and accurate information given to responders on the scene, which would not be possible if not for the efforts of dispatch employees and the training that they receive.
As the crowd grew, Harbison took a moment to speak on her time with dispatch and recognize dispatchers that had given decades of their lives before retiring.
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Brooke Faircloth, granddaughter of retired dispatcher Gaylin Gravens, was also in attendance having been with the center for three years, following in her grandfathers footsteps.”Growing up he always had his radio on him, so I grew up hearing the tones, and the officer’s,” she said. “I think the reason he kept the radio even after he retired, is that this work just stays with you.”
Graven’s pride in his granddaughter read on his face as Harbison spoke about how Faircloth is one of the center’s finest dispatchers. Faircloth now finds herself setting an example for her children as Graven had done for her.
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Josh Garmon, one of the shift managers for the center came into the job in a very different way, but now almost a decade later he could not be happier.
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Garmon also emphasized the amount of training that dispatchers receive, starting in the training area below the main call room, where they work on certifications necessary for emergency communications. After this period dispatcher then move to the upstairs call room for 1-on-1 training with one of the dispatchers.
This part of the employees training can vary depending on the person with Garmon saying, “We have a plan to get the new dispatcher trained in this amount of time, but we work with people and understand that everyone learns differently.”
While new members to the dispatch team are an incredibly important part for the health of the center, an equally important part is the wisdom that comes from experience, as Julie Greer, senior dispatcher with the center for 27 years can attest.
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While the changes and upgrades to the center itself have been enormous through the years, Greer pointed to something that has been hard for many dispatchers past and present. “Not everything is positive here, there is a lot of negative,” she said. “But, sometimes just hearing a thank you can go a long way.”
As the celebration began to wind down, the significance of the work these men and women do, could not be understated.
