It's a pretty exciting day for us here around the American Victory. Just last week, our governor signed the bill designating the Victory ship as a state flagship, and we're really excited about that and proud to be a part of that. The county has been an incredible asset to the ship. They've really supported us, you know, both financially with some grants that we've been able to use to preserve the ship. They're actually standing on newly refurbished decks right now that the county allowed us to perform this task. You see a lot of folks come here. You'll see the smiles of the grandkids walking with their grandfathers, and you'll see some tears and some eyes sometimes, and they just embrace the chance to appreciate what they've been through and what they did for the country. We're at Upper Tampa Bay Conservation Park. It is a 600-acre conservation park, kind of in the northwest corner of Hillsborough County. We are releasing some bobcats today. Owls Ness Rescue has worked with us several times releasing animals, not just at Upper Tampa Bay Conservation Park, but at many of our parks and nature preserves. And they pick them because they have suitable habitat. They have large spaces. This park in particular is about 600 acres, and only a small portion of that is actually used for human recreation. The rest is just kind of wide. For bobcats, you're looking at a year that you have to get them to where they need to be to be back in the wild. We've had to make sure that they know how to hunt native things. I've done this 40-some years, so I know if they get to a point that I know they're ready. You get anxious about it, and then you're almost at peace that they're going to be in a really good place. So they're going to figure it out. Good morning, everyone. Welcome to the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners' quarterly awards and recognition ceremony. One note of business, Chair Hagan is out today. He is helping his daughter move. Commissioner Myers is going to give the invocation and pledge. Commissioner, you're recognized. Okay, let us stand, please. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Heavenly Father, I come to you thanking you for another day. I ask that you would bless our quarterly award recipients in the various departments, employees, and volunteers who give their time, their talent, to help our constituents here in Hillsborough County. Bless us as we continue to move forward. Next quarter, let us have more employees who would be recognized at departments and volunteers to join you. We thank you for your service. In your holy name I pray. Amen. Thank you, Commissioner Myers. Today's ceremony celebrates the employees and volunteers whose work and accomplishments help make Hillsborough County a great place to live, work, and play. Out of respect for all those being recognized today, I ask that all of our attendees remain until the conclusion of the ceremony if you are able to do so. Commissioner Cohen will present our first two recognitions. Commissioner, you're recognized. Thank you very much, Madam Chair, and good morning. With the following individuals from the Social Services Department, please join me at the podium. Manager Derek Guida, Director Audrey Ziegler, and Division Director Maria Gillis. We can hold this up. There we go. Well, good morning, everyone. Community Action Agencies have done amazing work to care for and support Hillsborough County's most vulnerable individuals and families. Community Action Month recognizes these agencies, most notably the Hillsborough County Community Action Board, whose steadfast dedication and hard work has helped improve quality of life for our residents. The CAB, as it is known, is instrumental in ensuring the proper disbursement of community services block grants and other sources of funds for programs that provide assistance to residents facing economic distress. Consisting of representatives from the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners and the cities of Tampa, Plant City, and Temple Terrace, the Community Action Board has been exemplary in working alongside members who advocate on behalf of low-income residents, as well as representatives of organizations interested in providing social services. I am happy to present this proclamation to Mr. Guida, declaring May 2026 as Community Action Month. And I am going to read from the proclamation. Whereas the Hillsborough County Community Action Board guides the development, implementation, and evaluation of community services block grant funds and programs that serve residents and communities in need, and whereas the Hillsborough County Community Action Board meets regularly and serves as a fiduciary advisory board that makes recommendations based on input from residents as a guide to voice the needs of their communities, and whereas the support of its Community Action Board, Hillsborough County promotes economic prosperity by providing opportunities for residents in need. Now, therefore, be it proclaimed that the Board of County Commissioners of Hillsborough County, Florida, does hereby declare May 2026 as Community Action Month in Hillsborough County and urges all residents to recognize the Hillsborough County Community Action Board's efforts to improve quality of life and enhance economic opportunities for the region's most vulnerable residents executed this 22nd day of November 2026. Mr. Quina. Okay, thank you, thank you. Would you like to say a few words? Today we want to take this opportunity to thank the Board of County Commissioners, our Community Action Board members that are here with us today, and the social services staff that is also here with us today for supporting, for their support and dedication to anti-poverty efforts. We also want to raise the visibility of our programs and showcase successes in removing barriers and connecting motivated individuals and families to greater opportunities. The Hillsborough County Social Services Department receives funding through the Community Service Block Grant, a federal program dedicated to helping individuals and families move towards financial independence and stability. Guiding this mission is a 21-person member board represented by the public, private, and low-income individuals. There are two main focus groups, areas of focus, the education empowerment and the family empowerment program. The education empowerment program helps individuals achieve academic success through tuition, books, fee assistance, GED preparation and testing support, as well as adult continuing education and higher education scholarships. During the 2025 grant year, we were able to assist over 60 eligible students achieve their academic goals. In the family empowerment program, supporting families on their path to financial independence with up to 12 months of enrollment, for goal setting both short and long-term goals, personalized support and resources, and tools to overcome barriers and build stability. During the 2025 grant year, we were able to assist over almost 100 families enrolled in this program. Thank you again for your time and recognition to the Board of County Commissioners and Commissioner Cohen. Thank you. I wasn't going to say anything today, but thank you all for recognizing this month or next month, May, as Community Action Month. With the current economic situation, things are getting worse for the residents we serve. What we've seen is an uptick in people seeking crisis intervention services so that they're not evicted, so that they may be facing foreclosure of their homes, can't afford gas to get to work. So our efforts to help people out of poverty have become yet again more difficult. So it's really nice that you all recognize the achievement of the department, of the grant, and those people who are working so hard towards being economically self-sufficient. So thank you Commissioner Cohen for championing us again this year. Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you for coming. Okay, there we go. All right. Okay. I want to make sure I don't drop this. Would Sunshine Line Director Jerry Stickney and Manager of Operations Leslie McNeil please come to the podium. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Over four years in the transportation industry, Leslie has proven herself to be a bold, effective, and visionary leader. Her impact on Sunshine Line has been incredible, making her not only a driving force behind the department's recent successes, but also an inspiring example of the next generation of transportation leadership in Florida. Under her leadership as Sunshine Lines Manager of Operations, Ms. McNeil spearheaded aggressive recruitment and retention strategies that brought her team to 95% driver capacity. Additionally, Sunshine Line trips increased by 23%, totaling just over 530,000 door-to-door and bus trips in 2024. Client enrollment rose by 24%. Further, on-time performance was maintained at a stellar 93.4%, the envy of every major airline in America. Ms. McNeil has also demonstrated exceptional leadership through three hurricanes, two of which were major. As one of the lead coordinators for evacuation transportation in Hillsborough County, she ensured the safe, organized, and timely evacuation of vulnerable populations. Her calm command under pressure, strategic coordination with emergency management, and tireless commitment to public safety, exemplify her strength as a crisis leader and her dedication to serving the community when it matters most. What makes Ms. McNeil an exceptional candidate is not just her results, it's also her mindset. She leads with a passion for public service, and every decision she makes is rooted in improving lives, removing transportation barriers, and ensuring that residents reach their destinations with dignity, safety, and reliability. Her hard work and dedication are the embodiment of the University of South Florida Center for Urban Transportation Research's New Voice in Transportation Award. This award recognizes a professional who is making a difference in transportation planning, policy, engineering, or technology in Florida, and who has demonstrated exceptional leadership, creativity, and innovation in their work. It is my pleasure to present the 2025 New Voice in Transportation Award to Leslie McNeil, a vital member of Hillsborough County Sunshine Line. Leslie, congratulations. Just a quick update. We're currently at 97.1% on-time performance, and I could thank our department for that. Thank you very much. Thank you. All right, should we? Mr. Myers and I both served as chair of the Transportation Disadvantage Coordinating Board at various different points, so we know very much what you're on to do. Oh, excuse me. Mm-hmm. Be careful. Congratulations again. Our next recognition will be presented by Commissioner Cameron Cepeda. Well, good morning, everyone. Would Michael Galanis, Visual Design and Brand Identity Manager with Communications and Digital Media, and Julissa Vasquez, Computer Graphics Designer for CDM, please join me at the podium. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. A third member of this talented team, David Williams, is unable to attend today. Mr. Galanis and his graphics team do a phenomenal job designing colorful and highly informative flyers, graphics, and other materials for Hillsborough County Department's programs and events. One client in particular is the New Tampa Performing Arts Center, which has quickly become a hugely popular destination. This graphics team produced an eye-popping 2025-26 season booklet for the Performing Arts Center that attracted national attention during Graphic Design USA's 62nd American Graphic Design Awards program. Graphic Design USA is a premier source of news and information for graphic designers and broader creative community. This organization's award program is open to the entire creative community and recognizes excellence in two dozen categories. Graphic Designs. Graphic Design USA honored the CDM graphics team with the 2025 American Graphic Design Award for the Performing Arts Center seasonal booklet. This is an exceptional accomplishment. More than 6,000 entries were submitted and only a few hundred were honored, less than 10%, including some of the most recognizable brands and companies throughout the world. And this is the season booklet. It is absolutely amazing. It's, uh, what an amazing, wow. So beautiful. I just wanted to, so you can see some of that there. It's awesome. Awesome work. And, um, so Michael, congratulations to you and your creative team for being recognized for such outstanding work and the value this work brings to the county. This is a tribute to your team's excellence and high standards. Oh, we're to be on this side of the podium. We usually will take pictures on that side. Um, thank you, Commissioner Cepeda. Thank you, commissioners, for recognizing creativity in, uh, public service. Uh, thank you to our CDM team and our CDM leadership for their support. More importantly, thank you for the new Tampa Performing Arts Center for the collaboration and their input and bringing this, um, booklet to us. Um, booklet to life. Graphic design is not only about aesthetics, in my opinion. It's also about helping and informing, um, and connecting our residents. And we are truly honored to be part of that process. Uh, thank you very much. Congratulations. Congratulations. Thank you. That's absolutely awesome. And, um, we'll take some. Two, one more. One, two, three. Got it. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Our next recognition, um, will be presented by Commissioner Bowles. Please proceed. Good morning. Um, gonna have Joe Flack, president of the Kings Point Amateur Radio Club. Aries Racis, coordinator, Skip Argo. Aries Racis, lead member, Bill Williams, and fire inspector, Myesha Johnson. Join me up here, please. Put my glasses on here. Good morning, everybody. Um, we're here to recognize these fine individuals. And it's always good to kind of feel like I'm back in the, the fire service a little bit, kind of get that little touch of the base there. Um, but the next series of awards goes to the Hillsborough County's Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Services, also known as Racis, a volunteer team that provides auxiliary communications for Hillsborough County's Office of Emergency Management. Hillsborough Racis coordinates operations with local clubs and amateur radio operators. Ham radio operators, also known as hams, are federally licensed and internationally recognized to use short and long range radio frequencies, enabling them to communicate not only locally, but around the world. This is important to prepare for emergency operations. The hams take many of the same courses as the OEM staff and they participate in local and state national exercises. One such national exercise is the American Radio Relay League's 24 hour field day exercise. Field day is designed to practice operating in less than ideal situations, such as a disaster. And we've had our fair share in the last few years. Um, and during this exercise, operators may use emergency power, temporary antennas, different antennas or equipment, or operate from alternate locations to simulate real world emergency communication scenarios. The scoring for the field day is based on a number of contacts made in logged around the United States. Two of the racist teams from Hillsborough County that participated in the field day, Aries races in Kings Point amateur radio club scored at such a high level. They were recognized in QST, the national amateur radio publication. Both teams operated as they were on emergency power using different antennas, emergency power or other nonstandard configurations. The core team at the county EOC operated as if they were on emergency power and used minimal operators. The Kings Point team operated using one of the Hillsborough County County's new solar charging trailers. Because of the efforts of the organizers and operators to contact as many stations as possible and identify opportunities to maximize multipliers, each team was able to improve its overall score. The county core racist team scored first place in the state and third place nationally, while the Kings Point team achieved second in the state and 12th nationally. To put the standings in perspective, there were 2500 stations operating in the F class, otherwise known as the EOC class. The results indicate that Hillsborough County's capability of hams to support our residents and first responders during the emergency are exemplary. Congratulations to all of you on a job well done and thank you for your service. That is really amazing that you guys were able to score that high and to do such a fantastic job. And I can't recall how far the hams radio goes back. Maybe one of you all could do that. But it's so important for us to have those emergency operations, those alternative communications that I think that's fantastic that you are keeping that going and you're available to us. So congratulations on that. Well, we have a number of awards. I'm not sure how. There you go. All right. A lot of awards to give out for that standing accomplishment. Would either, would anybody like to make a few comments about it? You sure? Would you want to come up? Come on up. Thank you. Thank you very much. We really appreciate the recognition that Hillsborough County Fire Rescue Office of Emergency Management has extended to our efforts and that it is recognized on such a stage. We're really honored to have the opportunity to accept these awards from the commissioner. And I would just like to say that we are already hard at work planning for this year's field day. This is our opportunity to practice and exercise, utilize equipment, try new methods to make sure that we are ready to go. We can identify weaknesses and be able to get ourselves ready to provide the highest level of service to Hillsborough County. Thank you. Absolutely. Absolutely. It's a pleasure to be part of the community and the enthusiasm we have in preparedness for emergencies. One thing I'd like to say about our ham radio hobby, which is the backbone of our system. It's hard to compete with cell phones and it's hard to attract young people. So we don't have a good way to get our word out of how ham radio is still thriving today. We're still growing in numbers, but that cell phone is a big competition for us. During Milton, cell phone system went down. We didn't have it for about a week, some places two weeks. And during that time, we really relied on our radio systems. And so that's one of the things that we pride ourselves on and being able to serve the community. Thank you so much for the award and recognition. This concludes our ceremony for this morning. I want to thank all of you for being here today and thank our award recipients for the valuable work that they do to help make Hillsborough County the greatest county in the nation. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.