Deborah Gaither takes over the position on March 8. This will be home territory for the new director as she got her start with the Talladega County EMA.
Gaither started in emergency services in the mid 1990s. She was a volunteer in county wide exercises for the Talladega County EMA.
In 2001 she came on board as a financial officer for the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program.
Her next jobs here included being a deputy director and public information officer.
In 2007 Gaither went on to become director of the Gadsden/Etowah County EMA.
“I’m looking forward to returning to Talladega,” she said.
She feels her experience and familiarity in Talladega County plus the similar job details in Gadsden has prepared her well for her new position.
Gaither was worked with many of the Talladega personnel from her previous employment here and through her current position in Gadsden.
Gaither is already making plans for what her position will entail. She said she mainly wants to sustain the operations already in place.
However, that may be a challenge with possible shake-ups on the way.
Gaither said one of her highest priorities is to prepare the EMA for funding and preparedness changes as CSEPP will possibly close in 2012.
One new element Gaither finds herself going into is working with the new E911 dispatch center. However, the building is not completely unfamiliar to her.
“The concept was there when I was,” she said of her previous employment at the Talladega County EMA. “In fact, I was in on the first architectural drawings.”
“I’m looking forward to the new opportunities the center brings to responder training maybe even citizen training,” she said. She hopes the county can train people to handle emergencies regarding their families and property.
Gaither said she’s currently getting up to speed on the new responders.
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