Philadelphia Fire Department, Commissioner to Receive RSVP Award at Philmont CC

Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers and the Philadelphia Fire Department will receive the Retired Senior and Volunteer Program (RSVP) Community Leadership Award at the 41^st anniversary RSVP Volunteer Recognition Luncheon to be held at Philmont Country Club, 301 Tomlinson Road, on Thursday, May 24, beginning at noon.

Marcia Gross, project director for the Philadelphia area’s RSVP program, with headquarters at the Klein JCC in Northeast Philadelphia, says that Commissioner Ayers and the uniformed department he heads are being singled out for special recognition because of a long standing commitment to public service and volunteerism in protecting the citizens of Philadelphia. “In addition,” she notes, “Ayers and the valiant men and women of the fire department continue to address social issues, save lives and participate in major communal endeavors consistent with the goals and objectives of RSVP.”

Also being honored as part of the 41^st anniversary program will be some 800 active volunteers who dedicated 45,000 hours of service to 95 non-profit agencies. They cooked and delivered 40,000 meals to homebound elders who cannot cook for themselves, tutored students in elementary schools, educated visitors to Philadelphia museums and historic sites, comforted frail elderly residents in nursing homes, educated the community-at-large about key environmental issues, taught English and citizenship to immigrants and much more.

Commissioner Ayers was appointed Acting Fire Commissioner by former Mayor John F. Street in August of 2004. He was sworn in as Philadelphia Fire Commissioner on December 1^st of that year. He was re-appointed Fire Commissioner by Mayor Michael A. Nutter in January of 2008.

He is a graduate of the Murrell Dobbins High School, Machine Shop in 1969 as a machinist apprentice. He then served in the United States Coast Guard for four years and was honorably discharged with a rank of E-5.

He began his career with the Philadelphia Fire Department in 1974. He has devoted 37 years to public service with the fire department. As Fire Commissioner, he is charged with the management of its 2,300 member uniformed force and all operations of the Philadelphia Fire Department, the sixth largest in the United States.

Commissioner Ayers has served in every rank in the fire department, ranging from Firefighter to Fire Commissioner. He also previously served as Deputy Commissioner of Operations, and managed the activities of the Philadelphia Fire Academy, Fire Fighting Forces of Divisions 1 and 2, the Aviation and Marine units and the Safety Office. Prior to that, he was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Technical Services where he oversaw the Fire Marshal’s Office, Hazard Materials Administration, the Fire Prevention Unit, the Fire Code Unit and other critical service functions.

He holds a master’s degree in human services from Lincoln University and is a graduate and associate of the Carl Holmes Executive Development Institute at Clark-Atlanta University. Ha additionally has completed course work at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

He is a past president of Club Valiants, Inc., a director of the Northeast region of the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters and executive vice president of the International Association of Black Professional Fire Commissioners.

He and his wife, Annette, have six children, Maurice, Sheryce, Oscar, Sheree, Shakira and Jenne. They reside in the Andorra section.

The RSVP program is federally funded through the Corporation for National and Community Service and additionally receives funding from the Philadelphia Corporation For Aging and the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia. In Philadelphia, RSVP is sponsored by the Klein JCC located at 10100 Jamison Avenue in Northeast Philadelphia. For additional information, contact Marcia Gross at 267-345-7787 or email her at mgross@kleinjcc.org.