October 28, 2021 (San Antonio, Texas) —  Today is National First Responders Day, and we are proud to celebrate the founding members who keep our community safe and strong. We appreciate and celebrate our special partnership with the San Antonio Fire Department and the San Antonio Police Department.

We recently hosted representatives from the San Antonio Fire Department and the City of San Antonio at an award ceremony where four amazing SAFD team members were named San Antonio Business Journal 2021 Health Care Heroes. Deputy Chief Andrew Estrada, Emergency Services, and Assistant Chief Bryan Norris, Executive Officer of Emergency Services, Engineer/Paramedic Randa Brown, and Engineer/Paramedic Chris Velasquez were recognized for their commitment and innovation over the last year as our community was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nominated by SA Fire Department, Deputy Chief Estrada and Assistant Chief Norris are key leaders of the wide-ranging emergency operations developed and organized to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 through screening, testing, vaccinations, and decontamination sites, and to support vulnerable community members.

GFCU was pleased to nominate Engineer/Paramedic Brown and Engineer/Paramedic Velasquez, whose work helps maintain firefighters’ health and readiness, while tracking and coordinating vaccines and COVID-19-related assistance to home-bound citizens, nursing home patients, and homeless individuals.

As one of the first communities in the US to develop multi-agency protocols for dealing with COVID-19, these honorees created and managed programs and best practices that were shared and implemented in cities across the country.

We would like to thank SAFD Chief Hood, along with San Antonio City Manager Eric Walsh and their teams for joining us at the San Antonio Business Journal 2021 Health Care Hero Awards event, where these award recipients were recognized along with other local health care professionals.

On National First Responders Day, GFCU honors the legacy of service created by our founders and members in the San Antonio Police Department and San Antonio Fire Department.