February 2011 - Vol.03, No.02  
In This Issue
February is National Heart Month
2011 Basketball Shoot-off Results
Ropes Course Day
Thank You Letter
Promotion
Crossing Guard
Events Calendar

February - March                    

School presentations  

Fire Safety and Rig Tour  

(2nd grade)

  

February 14 - March 14

Fire Safety Poster Contest
(K-5th grades)

 

February 15                          

Youth & Horses

 

February 21                          

Presidents Day   

City offices closed

 

February 23

Challenge Team Sunnyvale Meeting ChallengeTeam.inSunnyvale.com

 

March 18               

Fire Safety Poster Contest deadline (K-5th grades)  

408-730-7140,
TDD 408-730-7501

 

April 5 Fire Safety Poster Contest Winners' Luncheon at DPS

Fire Safety Poster Contest Awards Ceremony

at City Council meeting  

7:00 P.M.
408-730-7140

Message from the Chief 

Shared Services -
The Wave of Our Future

 

This year, we will be pushing to gain efficiencies and economies of scale by developing "shared services programs" in Public Safety. We will be working with all cities in the region, but especially with the cities of Mountain View, Santa Clara, Los Altos, and Palo Alto to share equipment and staff across borders to consolidate service delivery. 

 

We do a very good job of working together during emergencies, but once the emergency is over, we go back to a model that has inherent redundancies in services; we all have stand-alone dispatch centers, fire prevention and investigation bureaus, records management systems..... and the list goes on. Our collective goal is to identify services that can be combined during the coming years and make strides to do just that. It is a new model for cities, and one that will require trust and vigilance by each city - no one likes to lose "local control," but the fact is that to be good stewards of public funds, this is a "have to."  

 

The police and fire chiefs are in discussions on many areas of consolidation, from technology to equipment, to staff; and the city managers and councils in each city have voiced their support and desire to make careful, but quick decisions to move this effort along. Our first examples are in process - Sunnyvale is going to be the "host site" for consolidated Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Records Management Systems (RMS), a savings of several million dollars across three cities and the first step in consolidating our dispatch centers. Sunnyvale, Mountain View, and Los Altos have also committed to sharing a specialized surveillance vehicle for undercover enforcement - in this case Mountain View will purchase the vehicle, and Sunnyvale will supply the equipment inside....... resulting in about $65k in savings overall. 

 

I am certain our efforts will pay dividends in both the short and long term. In addition to the potential of significant savings for participating cities, our "shared services model" provides for better communication and coordination across the region. Look for more as this new and exciting effort progresses!

 

Chief Johnson   

(408) 730-7140, TDD (408) 730-7501            

or email [email protected] 

February is National Heart Month

 

Heart disease has probably already touched you or someone you know. Make it your mission to fight heart disease and stop the No.1 killer in America. Go Red for someone you love!

 

Dial 9-1-1 Fast

Heart attacks and strokes are life-and-death emergencies - every second counts. If you see or have any of the listed symptoms, immediately call 9-1-1 or your emergency response number. Not all these signs occur in every heart attack or stroke. Sometimes they go away and return. If some occur, get help fast! Today heart attack and stroke victims can benefit from new medications and treatments unavailable to patients in years past. For example, clot-busting drugs can stop some heart attacks and strokes in progress, reducing disability and saving lives. But to be effective, these drugs must be given relatively quickly after heart attack or stroke symptoms first appear. So again, don't delay - get help right away!

 

For warning signs of heart attack, stroke and cardiac arrest, please click here.

 

2011 Basketball Shoot-off Results

On Friday, February 4th, more than 200 Sunnyvale seventh and eighth grade students participated in the 2011 Basketball Shoot-off Finals at the Columbia Neighborhood Center Gym. This was the culmination of the month-long qualifiers conducted by Department of Public Safety (DPS) Neighborhood Resource Officers, Crime Prevention Unit staff and Department of Community Services (DCS) staff at all the Sunnyvale schools with seventh and eighth grades. Several hundred students tried out and the top scorers from each division at each school were invited to the finals.

 

The University of Santa Clara Broncos' Women's Basketball Team joined the fun at finals providing coaching and re-bounders for the finalists. In addition to their prizes, the winners were honored at the Bronco's Basketball Game on Saturday, February 5th. Everyone who attended the event received free game tickets from the Broncos and free hotdogs provided by the Elk's Lodge.

 

The annual event co-hosted by DPS and DCS is made possible through community partnerships with the Sunnyvale Elks Lodge, Best Buy and Fry's Electronics.

 

7th Grade Boys

Maxwell Keith, Cupertino Middle School

18 baskets

 

8th Grade Boys

Nicholas Chew, Challenger

23 baskets

7th Grade Girls

Aathira Menon, Challenger School

16 baskets

8th Grade Girls

Kimmie Wong, Cupertino Middle School

17 baskets

Ropes Course Day - Youth/Mentor Kick-Off Day

On Saturday, January 29, seven Fremont High School students met their mentors at the Ropes Course in Baylands Park. Coordinated by Reach Potential and DPS, this kick-off event gave the youth and mentors a chance to get acquainted on common ground. Apex Adventures facilitated the all-day event which challenged both youth and their mentors to step outside their comfort zones.

 

This is the pilot group for Youth & Horses, which began its weekly trips to Gilroy on February 8.

 

Thank You Letter and Sentiments 

 

 

                               

Promotion

 

Tim Sartwell came to Sunnyvale in December of 1996. He has served in many capacities in the Department, including Police Training Officer, SWAT, GET, background investigator - and most recently as an Acting Lieutenant in Fire.  

 

Lieutenant Sartwell has always approached his work here at Public Safety with a "can-do, positive attitude" that will certainly carry over into his new leadership role. 

 

Congratulations to Tim Sartwell, the Department's newest Lieutenant!

Crossing Guard

 

Name: Mary McIlroy 

 

Intersection: Mango Ave. / Knickerbocker Dr.

 

School: Sunnyvale Middle School

 

Length of Service: Since April 3, 2010

 

Safety Quotes: "Stay inside the yellow lines" / "Stay on the sidewalk until you hear the whistle"

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