City Announces 'Fire Dispatcher of the Year'

From the City of Temple Terrace:

Jennifer Bowling, a veteran of the , was named Temple Terrace’s 2011 Fire Dispatcher of the Year during an awards ceremony Tuesday at .

Bowling, 30, received the award from Keith Chapman, who praised her outstanding skills and service to the community. To be named Fire Dispatcher of the Year, Bowling had to exceed the emergency protocol requirements of the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch, which set rigorous standards for telecommunications professionals in fire, police and emergency medical services.

Bowling, a senior communications officer with six-and-a-half years of service, achieved an astounding 99.6 percent rating in handling emergency calls, officials said. It can be a stressful job, but Bowling said her competitive spirit drives her to perform at her best.

“It’s like a competitive side of me,” she said. “I want to make sure I’m helping the person on the phone with me, but I also want to make sure that I get it right.”

Bowling moved to the Tampa Bay area from the Florida Keys, where she was a secretary for the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office. She always had an interest in law enforcement, she said, so the opportunity to train as a Temple Terrace dispatcher was too hard to pass up.

“I really enjoy making a difference,” she said. “Not only are we making sure the people we talk to are safe and taken care of, but we’re making sure the firefighters and police officers are safe and taken care of, too.”

The Temple Terrace Communications Center is a primary 9-1-1 call center for Hillsborough County, handling nearly 10,000 emergency calls per year and more than 30,000 annual calls for service. With a staff of 12 full-time communications officers, the Temple Terrace Communications Center consistently provides residents with quality service and outstanding response times.

This week, the communications center is celebrating National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week (April 8-14). The week is dedicated to honoring the individuals who provide 9-1-1 assistance to callers across the country.