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From
the President's Desk...
Message from ASSIST President Dave
Parker
We were all disappointed to learn that Cliff Grumbles resigned as manager of the Private Security Bureau. Cliff resigned to spend more time at home with his wife Linda. Linda is recovering from health issues and they live in San Antonio. Imagine the hours Cliff has had to spend in Austin through the transition to DPS, legislative sessions, etc., and then drive home to San Antonio each evening.
Most of the ASSIST Board attended Cliff�s retirement ceremony. Some of Cliff�s innocent comments came back to haunt him, but most of the event was a testimonial to Cliff�s dedication and commitment to his work with TCOPS and the PSB. The highlight of the afternoon was when Mr. Grumbles played the drums! Yes, the drums! DPS retired his weapon and presented it to him.
As most of you know, Cliff expanded the communications line from the regulators to the regulated. Cliff was always open to discuss any matter of concern to us and met with us as often as his busy schedule would allow. His greatest asset was his straightforward approach to all issues and his fairness with all parties concerned. We already miss him.
Fortunately, DPS has selected Capt. Leonard Hinojosa as Cliff�s replacement. Our board met with Capt. Hinojosa briefly during our June board meeting. He was formerly with the Office of Audit and Inspection. We believe he will be an excellent fit for his new position, and we look forward to meeting with him at the ASSIST convention.
Thanks to our Executive Vice President Walt Roberts and our esteemed Legislative Liaison Keith Oakley, we had an excellent legislative session. You can read Walt�s article regarding the specifics, but it seems that every time I called Walt during the session he was either in Austin, or driving to or from Austin for meetings.
They really did a fantastic job in keeping ASSIST�s interests covered. Keep in mind that this legislative session had more than 7,000 bills introduced.
We have a new challenge coming to the profession. Many of us have complained about the several levels of training mandated by the PSB. Our board, in conjunction with the PSB Board and bureau, has elected to develop and propose training to the PSB which will, if approved, become the mandatory training for security staffs.
The ASSIST Board met in June to develop proposed training. We are very fortunate to have several training experts within our membership who were able to guide the board of directors in this project. Dan Walker, Alan Trevino, Ed Hearne and Earl Portnoy all attended our meeting and assisted in content and direction of the proposed training in each of the levels. We will introduce our proposed training recommendations to the membership at the convention in El Paso. Members must keep in mind that as our profession evolves and technology improves, we must lead the way in training and testing.
It�s important that ASSIST be at the forefront and be involved in setting the standards, rather than having third parties impose standards upon us.
The Fallen Officer Fund has been incorporated and we�ve accomplished all the filings with the state. The only delay is the process through the IRS and receiving our nonprofit identification number. The IRS has a backlog of applications, but we should have everything from them sometime in September.
As we approach our annual meeting remember that we have elections this year for the board of directors. Alan Trevino, president of Sentry Security and Investigations, L.P., is our nominations chairman and if you wish to run for office or nominate someone for office, notify Trevino. The easiest way to make any nomination to Trevino is by e-mail at:
[email protected]
The theme for the annual convention this year is �Security on the Borders.� We have invited U.S. Sen. John Cornyn as one of the many keynote speakers. We also have a U.S. congressman, state representatives, state senators, head of the Texas Homeland Security Department and Col. Tommy Davis, director of the Department of Public Safety. This is a lineup that�s hard to beat.
This year we�ve invited the locksmiths, ASIS members, TBFAA members and all professions regulated by the Department of Public Safety. We�ll have our annual golf tournament, a little trip south of the border and plenty of fun things to surround the Continuing Education program. And, we will have our annual Hospitality Room! Come visit with your ASSIST Board members in the Hospitality Room.
Dave Parker
ASSIST State President
832-274-1079
[email protected]
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