Employee Service Award Presentations - Jul 09, 2026

First of all, congratulations to all the folks. It's a milestone. It's not up to us to get here, and it's not easy to get here. Some of you folks have been here 30 years, and that's an important milestone. So we'll call up corrections first. So, Sharia, it'll get a lot more quiet once they're out of here. Yeah. So, can we play the mayor's video, please? Congratulations to all of our employees receiving service awards today. Whether you're marking five or 35 years with our county, this incredible career milestone is something to celebrate. Your years of service reflect dedication, compassion, and an unwavering commitment to our residents. Every day, you help make our community stronger, more connected, and future-ready. And for that, we are forever grateful. People will always be our greatest asset. You are our hands and our hearts, delivering excellence every day. Because of your hard work, we're building a government that responds compassionately to our residents' needs and puts customer service first, building public trust in local government. You're part of a proud workforce shaping a future that's vibrant, affordable, and ready for the challenges ahead. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. For your service. Congratulations again on these special anniversaries. And here's to many more years of building a better Miami-Dade together. So, I'm not sure who's been in the jails today because you're all here. So, Niukia Cimentada, congratulations on 30 years. So, I'm going to have your director say a few words, please. Good morning, everyone. I love how my chief is showing corrections a lot of love today. It is truly an honor to be able to stand before you all as a director and we celebrate who we affectionately refer to her as, Nikki. She is just simply amazing. Since I've been here for three years and from the first time that I met Nikki, she has been nothing but a breath of fresh air. And she's always smiling. She's always helping everyone. She has such a pleasant, pleasant personality. She's decorating for every holiday, even holidays we don't know about. But what made me really, really respect Nikki is during the holidays, we have vendors that work in our buildings, security and those sanitation workers. And during the holidays, she ensures that we make their life just a little bit better and their families. We have a, I'll call it a love token that we provide to those individuals so that they can have a better holiday. And she has a ceremony where she actually presents this to those individuals. And this is just a small token or an expression of who she is. She's amazing. And to be here 30 years and to still have that kind of zest and love within who you are, all I've seen you do, and it aligns with my vision. You always show love. You always show grace. You show so much respect. I love you, and it is truly an honor to have worked with you and to continue to work with you. You're not going anywhere. On behalf of MDCR, we just truly value you, and we thank you for giving us you. We thank you for the love and all that you continue to give to us. And I know there's some other individuals that if I don't allow them to speak, I'm going to have some problems. So I'm going to pass the mic to Executive Officer John Johnson. Good morning. Good morning. I was PIO. Juan had me read this. So we're going to talk about Nikki, then I want to say a couple of things from here. So Nikki began her career with Miami-Dade County in 1996 and joined the Miami-Dade County Correctional Rehabilitation Department. I'm not going to cry, Nikki. In 1999 as a data entry specialist with the Chaplaincy Service Bureau. Through her dedication and strong work ethic, she was promoted to Administrative Secretary and later to her current role as Executive Secretary. Prior to joining the department, Nikki worked for Miami-Dade Transit as a Medicaid STS reservation agent and a compliance line operator where she developed the exceptional customer service and organizational skills that continue to define her career. I don't believe that one. I think that was instilled in her birth. And mom's going to attest to that. As the Executive Secretary for Community Services, Nikki plays an integral... I'm not going to read this. I'm not going to read this. We love Nikki. And at the end of the day, I hope you all don't take it as an insult for me not to want to read her professional accomplishments because there are many. But this is my rock. This is my glow. This is my Nikki. And everything that the director says, I can echo. But I get the advantage and the privilege of doing this with her every day. You have every agency has that person that keeps you flowing. Every quote-unquote boss has that person and keeps them in line. And this is Nikki for me. She comes in. She keeps me grounded. She keeps me spiritually aware. She calls me when I'm wrong. I saw you, Shimona. And I don't know what I would do without it. I'm here primarily. Not primarily. I need the money. She makes it a whole lot easier. Now, you're going to hear a lot of people come up here in which Nikki refers to its boss. And she worked with them previously. But she's mine now. Good morning, everyone. So just to burst his bubble, Nikki was mine first. And the only reason why she is his now is because I'm retired. But I would truly say that everything that you heard is accurate. She is such a special individual. And I think the most beautiful thing about her is she's a woman of God. And she is a much-needed light in that organization. She comes in every day with a smile no matter what's going on. And I just thank you for being just a beautiful person that you are. And I don't know what I would have done without you. So God bless and continue your wonderful career. I love you. Oh, well, she was yours first. Yes, she was mine first. But you see how we all fight for her because Nikki is truly, she is a woman of God. And she is the purest, most kind person I have ever met in my life. She radiates true grace. She radiates that humanity that we all need in today's world. And that's why we all fight for her because when you walk in a dark room, Nikki walks in and she lightens the place. Because she's that kind of a human being. So we all love her. Who did you come to work? Who brought you here today? You! Albert, would you like to say something? I was just going to admit to Albert. Come on, Albert. Albert is Nikki's husband and he's been with her how long? 29 years. And he retired from Dade County? Yeah, 34 years. How many? I retired seven years ago. Okay, and you work for who? Transit. How many years? 34. All right. Okay, I guess so. Good morning, everybody. First of all, I want to say thank you for my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who brought me to this county. The blessing of serving my community. I am grateful. I am grateful because it has been a blessing. I thank you for my friend, Celia Ramos, who talked to me about the county and brought me in. And I am grateful to the county for the opportunity and the blessing of providing and taking care of my family. What else? Well, you can see I have many bosses. No, y'all. I love them all. They are amazing human beings. They are wise. They are humane. They are kind. They are generous. And they have really impacted my life with wisdom. I love each and every one of them. They are very special in their own way. And to my county family, my brothers and sisters behind me, you have all impacted me. You have all contributed to my growth as a person and as an employee. I love you all. I will always carry you in my heart. I ask God to bless you and prosper you. And thank you. I want to thank my mother who gave me life and who takes care of me and whose wisdom and her wisdom carries me. She takes care of me like a baby, even though I'm old now. But I'm still a baby to her. She helps me a lot on a daily basis. Yes, and my husband, who always pushes me to do better, and he's the reason I'm in corrections today. Because he said, you got to go, you got to go. So I'm here. This institution is amazing. I think they count me for the opportunity to serve it. Not only my family, my coworkers, my brothers and sisters, they're my family, but my community. There's no greater service than to serve others. So thank you, and God bless you all. So next we're going to do P.I.O.D., Lisa Wilcox, and Director Ray, no pressure. No pressure. No pressure. No pressure. Oh, it's mine. Good morning. Well, we're here to celebrate Lisa. 30 years. I tell my team all the time that what we don't realize sometimes is the most important people are the people that are doing the actual work. The people, like, in our group that you only hear about us when the lights don't work, the car doesn't start, there's a problem with your paycheck. That's when you think of us. But they do so much in the background. And the work that they've done over years, sometimes they didn't even notice. But they're the spine of the operation to make sure things get done. That's my job, to be their cheerleader. So I've been here two months, haven't burnt the building down yet, but I've come close. But we're here to talk about Lisa. Lisa's been here with us for 30 years. She joined back in 1996 as a compensation specialist with HR. Was Aneldo around back then? Oh, I feel for you. 2001, she accepted a promotion with aviation, the recruitment specialist. And she returned back to HR personnel services in 2018 as an examination specialist. And she's part of the team that makes sure that handles all of the testing with the fire department, making sure that they qualify and review all the questions and all that, which is a key part to help people move up and go through their process. Her dedication to public service and loyalty to this organization and pride will take you in your work and you have made a lasting and meaningful impact with PRD and all county departments. Being in the role that you've been, sometimes we're able to help people along the way, especially in HR. And for us, it's our job. For them, it's that one moment that they won't forget. On behalf of Miami-Dade, congratulations. You know, this is a great thing. I wish I'm going to get there someday. And I thank you for your outstanding service, professionalism, and commitment to the excellence. And I know Virginia wanted to say a couple words, too. I've known Lisa so long, it doesn't seem like it's been that long. But I'm glad Ray mentioned aviation because she left to go to aviation and we stole her back. But Lisa is one of those people. She's always smiling and she's always in a good mood. You know, in HR, we talk about being the director of first impressions and making that impression on new employees or potential new employees who come in. And Lisa is the epitome of that. She is a wonderful person and she's the only person I know who's always happy. Right? She's always smiling and I appreciate her. She's done a wonderful job and she is, willing to say, delivering excellence every day. You see a picture of Lisa. You want to say something? You want to say something? I think Virginia... Oh, you want to say... Oh, okay. Hi. Hello. Good morning. I've had the pleasure of working with Lisa. I met her maybe year 2002, maybe. With 9-11. 9-11, yeah. We had the pleasure of working together in the same department, fingerprint operations. And then Lisa... Then Lisa went to HR. She went back and we stayed in touch. Lisa is beautiful. The attitude is always positive. Lisa has positive words. She calls me. I have to thank her because when it's information that I owe her to help get the new hires in. And I tell her, Lisa, I'm busy. I'll call you back. She never yelled. She never screamed. No nasty emails. She waited until I was able to get back to her with the information. And that made a great team for me and her. All these years, we stayed together. She is a beautiful person. I love you. And I'm glad I have the pleasure of knowing you. Jennifer Abadi. Good morning. I had the pleasure of working with Lisa at the aviation department. Leviation was... She was an amazing team player. She helped us accomplish our goals. And more importantly, from that relationship, she's a friend. We see each other outside of work. And I'm retired, so we still owe each other lunch. But the point is, she is an incredible person. Kind, caring, compassionate, and just a steady force. And just a beautiful, beautiful person. God bless you, Lisa. And I'm very happy to be here with you. Good morning. I'm Barbara Jimenez from the aviation department. Also work with Lisa. And it was a great pleasure. She was always there for us. Whatever we needed, she was our go-to. And especially in the recruitment. And even right now, in the testing and validation, she's truly helping us out. So thank you, Lisa. We appreciate it. And we love you very much. Yes, and you left. We know Virginia. I just want to say congratulations to you, Lisa. Like, you were amazing. Like, every department, every job division needs a Lisa. I was very young when I started with aviation. I love firecracker. And just your wisdom and just everything, like, just help build character. And just, I just appreciate you. And not only are you celebrating 30 years of work, but 20 years of marriage in this generation, in this season. So I appreciate you and everything you do. Thank you. Hi, I'm also from aviation. I worked with, Lisa worked with me. I was her supervisor. She was a recruiter. She was an excellent recruiter. She was very dedicated. She was a team player. And like everyone said, you have a very, very lovely spirit even to this day. Um, she, um, worked really well with the employees. She worked very well with her divisions. And she worked long hours. And she was just a great person. So, Lisa, I thank you and appreciate you for all that you did for aviation while you were there. And so, um, we did pass the baton on to HR. So, before I leave, I had a little plaque for you. And this applies actually to everybody that's celebrating 30 years with the county, right? So, what does 30 years mean? How long is 30 years, really? So, this plaque says, presented to Lisa Wilcox, 30 years of service, which equals 360 months, 1,565 weeks, 10,957 days, 262,980 hours, 15,778,800 minutes, that's 30 years. And I'm sure you've already exceeded that, okay? So, congratulations, Lisa, on your 30 years and this milestone. Hi, everybody. You've heard how genuine a person Lisa is. I've had the privilege of working with Lisa for eight years because she came back to testing. We hold a very special place in her heart. And her return was like this long-lost dream that she had to return to her family. And we appreciate it. Everybody said all these wonderful things about Lisa, and they all are true. She is a dedicated worker. She's resilient. She's exceptionally knowledgeable in all that she does. And she brings that wherever she goes. She came to testing with a wealth of knowledge in recruitment, compensation, county policies, procedures, and testing. But Lisa also brought something even more special to our group. She has a welcoming spirit. She has a warm personality. She has a big, huge, caring heart for anybody who comes into contact with Lisa. And one thing people probably don't know is that she has this sense of humor that comes out of nowhere in the middle of a conversation. Lisa has this gift of telling a joke with a straight face. She doesn't crack a smile. It's, like, totally serious, like, totally involved in the conversation. And then after you take a little moment and you're like, wait a minute, what did she say? Or what was that? And then you see this little smirk come across her face. And you're like, oh, Lord, the jokester has appeared. You know, and everybody starts laughing. I just love that. And I love that about Lisa. She has this part of her where even in dark, I say darkest moments, but that means, like, our office has been presented with a challenge. And Lisa's there to bring that light forth, that humor, that light side to say, hey, we're going to get through this also. It calmly, she'll, she's diligent. She'll do whatever to get through anything to make it successful. And I love that about Lisa, along other things. Lisa, I've had so much, so much true pleasure working with you, getting to know you over these eight years. It seems longer, but it's only been eight years. And congratulations on your 30 years of outstanding service. Thank you. Good morning, everyone. I've had the pleasure of knowing Lisa for the past 30 years. Lisa and I, we worked in HR. I was in recruitment, and she was in compensation. We not only develop a co-worker relationship, but a friendship and a family. She's my sister. I've gotten the pleasure of knowing Lisa's mom, her husband, her brother when he was alive. And Lisa is a kind and wonderful person. She is a great inspiration to everyone, no matter what it is. Yes, Lisa is very positive. But not only that, she's very God-faring. So, Lisa, congratulations on this, your 30 years with Miami-Dade County. May God continue to bless you on your new journey. Thank you. I love you. Good morning, everyone. I just want to echo, I think Joan just stole my bubble just now. There's a lot of attributes said about Lisa. And one of the greatest ones is that she's God-fearing. Previous recipient, Nikki, said that. And in these days and times, it takes a higher power to get you through. Lisa is a professional. She's competent, and she's likable. So, as a supervisor or a manager, it's easy to manage people when you have that character. So, Lisa, congratulations. Your husband and your mother, they're very supportive. I attended the event last two weeks ago, and it just shows where you get your strength from. All right. Congratulations. It's an honor and a pleasure to work with Miami-Dade County for 30 years. I have met beautiful people that I respect, supervisors who have taught me a lot and the knowledge. And then, like you say, we became not just your managers. We became friends. I can call them, and, you know, like Bobby and also Jennifer, who retired. And I reached out to her and Charles at another, and they were so happy to come. And I appreciate that. But Virginia, I know she's a very busy person, so I know our director was going to be here, and I was happy. But when I saw she came, I was just like, oh, my God, you know. So, I just want to say thank God for allowing me to meet beautiful people. I thank him for allowing me to have a job for 30 years because of the, you know, where we are now. Some people out there wish they were in our shoes, and it's a blessing to have a job. And it's a blessing to come to work and be happy, you know, because, like you say, my boss Twyla said, you come through challenges that come up and make you become angry or, you know, become somebody and come every day. But you have to put your head up and say, you know what, I'm going to find a beauty in something. And one thing I always say, I have a job. And that's the best that we can get up. If you have a job, you can go home and all the other things, it'll go away. So, I just want to thank everyone. I want to thank my mom for being my rock. I want to thank my husband, Tommy, for being my rock. And without them two, I don't know where I'd be. And my mom also, she was a Miami-Dade County. She was with Miami-Dade Hub for 35 years, a site manager and everything. So, she understands how we love Miami-Dade County. When I was finished college, I was like, you got to get a job with the county now. That's a good job. So, that's why I'm here with the county. But I just want to say thank you again for everyone. And thank you for showing up and supporting me. And God bless you. So, as they're walking out, we're going to call up RER, Jose M. Torres. Bormes. That doesn't matter. Okay, okay. Just let me know. I'm rolling with you. I'm rolling with you. We can keep it done. Less than 20 speakers. Lean and mean. Probably at most, four speakers, right? Good morning. Where's the... Good morning. This, we're all here. Not many of us, like the previous groups. But I just said lean and mean. We're here because Jose Tormes is a very important person within our department. And 30 years, major milestone. And I was just thinking back. I've actually worked with him for the last 19 years, to be exact. And Jose has done a lot and continues to do a lot to make sure that buildings are built in Miami-Dade County to the right elevation so that they're protected against flooding. So, he has a major, major, major job that he completes every day. And all the best. My congratulations. See you in the hallways. Right? Right. Thank you very much. Good morning, everyone. And it's been a real privilege for me to work during my five-year tenure here at the county with Jose. But I've worked with Jose outside of that and for many, many years because we're what's called a certified floodplain manager. We're floodies. Okay? And I have participated with Jose in many continuing education. And he has been a go-to person for information because he has so much of it. We work for the beloved building permit department. Okay? And his task is to make sure that buildings are built to the right elevation for flooding, which is a big problem for South Florida. And for many, many years, Jose has used his knowledge not to create barriers but to break barriers down and help other customers that are going through the permit process comply with the regulations as easy as possible. So, I commend Jose for his 30 years of being with the county with the incredible knowledge that he holds for the job that he does and for helping our customers get through the permit process a lot easier. So, Jose, thank you. And I look forward to continuing to work with you in the years to come. Thank you very much. Good morning, everyone. I'm Christian Guerrero. I'm the Environmental Permitting Division Director. So, I've worked with Jose for a very long time. We actually met back in the 90s when we started with the county. Jose has been instrumental in environmental plan review. He's spent his entire 30 years working under our division, reviewing plans, approving elevation certificates, making sure it's building comply with Chapter 24, Chapter 11C, and making sure that they're flood-resistant, flood-compliant, and he has been a mentor to all the staff within the section. So, he's a wealth of knowledge, and he has trained staff and brought new staff on board, and he's been essential in our plan review process. So, we want to thank Jose for his 30 years of service and continue, you know, career with the county. Thank you, Jose. Thank you. Good morning. 30 years ago today, I had started with the county. I thought I was going to be with the county for just a few years, but here I am. And hopefully, I'll be here until I retire. I thank the county and my supervisors for all the wealth of knowledge that they have given me, and it has been a pleasure and an honor to work for Miami-Dade County. Thank you, Jose. Okay, so, we'll do seaport next. So, Carlos A. De La Torre. Good morning, Ms. Lawson. Thank you. Pleasure. Nice to meet you. Felicidades. Thank you. Sir? Good morning. My name is David Claude Felter. I'm the CFO at the port, and Carlos works in my area, and we're here to celebrate 30 years. I've known Carlos about 20 and worked with him for 20 of those 30 years and worked with him for a time on those 30 years, and we're working together again. Similar to other people, HR gave me something to read. It keeps me out of trouble. Let's see. Carlos de La Torre. Throughout his 30-year career with the county, Carlos has worked in three departments and has worked the last two years in the seaport department, where he will hopefully complete his career with the county, at least to be selfish, at least until I finish my career. Throughout his career, Carlos has moved up through the ranks, starting as Social Worker 1 in the Human Services Department, received a promotion to DTPW, that's where I worked with Carlos, as a Paratransit Support Specialist. Moving up to Administrative Officer 2 position in Materials Management, Carlos was promoted to the Budget Office in Transit as an Administrative Officer 2 and a Special Projects Administrator, moving up to Manager of Budget, eventually to the Chief in Budget. And in November of 24, Carlos came to our department as Chief Seaport Management in Budget. We're here today to recognize Carlos' accomplishments and contribution to the county and the seaport department and wish him continued service. Thank you, Carlos. And it's always great to come here, especially now, you know, honoring you today. Good morning. Alyssa Peñalosa, Deputy Director of the Port. I, on the other hand, have not worked for very long with Carlos, just two years. We were very excited when he joined us, because budget is very important to us, and he's doing an incredible job. The one thing I can say about Carlos is you're always smiling, you're always happy, and that makes coming to work so much better. Thank you, Carlos. Hello. Hi, my name is Christy. Sorry, I'm shy. Hi, my name is Christy, and I work for Carlos. I'm in budget with him, and we started together, essentially. And I knew nothing about budget, and he taught me everything I needed to know, because he's extremely approachable, he's extremely friendly, and he makes it a very enjoyable work experience. So I learned everything from him, and I hope to grow and learn more from him. Good morning, everybody. I just want to say thank you. It's been quite a ride, 30 years. I can't believe that it's gone that fast. And I've had the honor of working with some very good mentors, supervisors, and incredible people along the way. Hopefully, it will continue in the near future, and be back for the 35-year one pretty soon. Thank you. Good morning, everyone. Let's try that again. Good morning, everyone. Sorry I was a couple minutes late. It's a pleasure to be with all of you. My name is Danielle Cohen-Higgins. I'm your Miami-Dade County Commissioner representing District 8. And I just wanted to say a few words for our employees that were recognized already, and for those of you that are about to be recognized. I'm born and raised in this community, and so those of you that are receiving service awards for 20, 30, 35 years, really, as a resident born and raised and raising her family here, thank you for the work that you do on behalf of my family and the 3 million amazing residents here in Miami-Dade County. This is our opportunity to take a moment to say thank you and allow your coworkers to say a few words, recognizing your years of hard work and dedication on behalf of Miami-Dade County. So from the bottom of my heart to yours and to all of your families and your colleagues, a sincere, a sincere thank you for your years of service. And we're going to get the energy up a little bit, and we're going to get to our transit department. Who's excited about transit? If we can have our director, Director Stacey Miller, if she's here, is Director Stacey Miller here? If you can join us, we are going to begin the presentation with Mr. Curtis Anderson. Mr. Curtis Anderson, if you are here, 30 years of service. Good morning, everyone. Hi, how are you today? Good to meet you, ma'am. Feeling good? Good person. You know, I'm going to take a little point of privilege to thank the commissioner for her generous words and to thank you all. Obviously, when we have these opportunities, it's fantastic to be able to celebrate years of service and civil service, which is so important. And so thank you. Before we get started, I'm actually going to ask Joel to provide some comments, because Joel has gotten to know you a lot more than I have. I've only been here 15 months, but Joel's been working with you for a very long time. Yes. Thank you. Well, Curtis, congratulations. It is a pleasure for me to be here today and to have the honor of being by Curtis to celebrate these 30 years. Curtis and I, although I've been in the county for much longer than Curtis, but when Curtis was hired as a supervisor, him and I both started as a supervisor together. And we both worked for Metro Mover on second shift together. And we helped each other tremendously. I mean, there wasn't a time where we didn't communicate to ensure that we can get our mover system running and that we could provide service to our customers every single day. Curtis has came to the county. He was already had studied. He had been an engineer. He had worked for Westinghouse, and he was instrumental on a lot of the projects that we did for our bricklay and omni extension. And then when he came over to the county, he has worked on numerous projects which have provided great benefit to us as a department with savings on utilizing a lot of the ideas that he's put into place. And for that, we are very grateful. He's also very fortunate to have a great family and that I know that he's very dedicated to them and that they mean a lot to him. And during the times that we were together, our families were growing together, so there were times that we were able to share our ideas and things that we were going through. And for that, I really appreciate you, and I am so happy that you have reached this milestone. Thanks, Yel. Good morning, everyone. Me and Curtis are coworkers. My name is Jamel Vera. Nice to meet you. Quick story about Curtis, our interaction. When we first met, I had just moved down here. Maybe a second person I meet is Curtis. Hey, Curtis, nice to meet you. He introduces himself. A week later, me and Curtis are both out with COVID. So either he gave it to me or I gave it to him. So we will ever be forever linked with that. We also have a mutual respect for martial arts. I appreciate that part. But Curtis is extreme. Oh, I'm sorry. Ma'am, I want to thank you for the countless hours that you've shared him with us. And I want to apologize because, as everyone will attest, it is difficult when you serve the public. And I want to apologize for the late-night calls, for the change in work schedule, Curtis has really stepped up, you know, in countless ways. I can't name them all. But we really appreciate you, Curtis. You've done everything with respect and professionalism. And I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors. I want you to stay on a selfish note for the next five to ten years. You know, that's what your calendar may be a little bit different. Okay. Thank you very much. Short group. I really appreciate it. And like Jamel says, I guess to make things really happen, you ever hit it saying happy life, happy wife, or happy wife, happy life, whatever. Yes. But this is my rock. This is what's helped me to get out. It's like that old saying, if you choose the right one, and you will have a happy life. It says, if you choose the wrong one, then, you know, things may go different. But I was lucky in that. But then I found out later that what God does is he doesn't speak to us like he used to. He doesn't talk to you like Moses where there's a burning bush and things like that because kids today wouldn't understand it. I am thee. Do what I say. Dude, get over here. There's an AI talking to his speakers. You know, that kind of thing. But it's just different. What I notice now is what he does is if God wants you to do something, what he does is we have this thing called free will. And basically what he does, he just removes your free will. I mean, my wife and I have been together 35 years this year. But if he told either of us 35 years ago that we'd be together 35 years, neither one of us would have said no. You know, there's times that early on I tried to break up, and then I don't know what happened to her free will. The next thing I'm, how did I get here? What do you want? Hey, I don't know. It's just that. But, I mean, I'm happy to be with the county. I think one of the things that actually helped me, like Jamel said, was martial arts. It's two things that helped me, being an engineer, helped me to analyze things, and being a martial artist, taught me perseverance. And those things come hand in hand. Kelly Levy, there was a class they had called emotional intelligence. That was a great class. I think every manager should have that because it teaches you how to get every positive aspect out of each individual that works for you. Because everybody has something different to offer, and different people can motivate people. People speak well of me, because that's what I do, is I don't try to take credit for a lot of things. Metro Mover, like Joe said, supervisors are great. Working with supervisors, everybody has their own particular skill set, and I've learned to utilize that skill set. And it's not that I didn't start out to do big things. Yeah, I want to do big things. But sometimes I would do something small that becomes big. One thing it is is analyzing, hey, these guys know what they're doing. So when there's a problem, okay, he did this, he did that, she did that, what's left? Oh, did we check this? And all of a sudden it's like, wow, look what Curtis did. But it was the efforts that they did, and it all comes together. And I appreciate that, and I appreciate working for the county, and my wife and my family. My daughter's back there. She's quiet. But, you know, I just want to thank everybody, and I really appreciate it. I don't want to take up too much time because there's other people here. They want to, you know, they got things to do. They want to eat. They want to go. Thank you so much. At the same time. Quick photo. If our transit team members can stay, please, and Ms. Audra Andrews-Wilson, if you can join us, please. Audra Andrews-Wilson, 30 years of service to Miami-Dade County. Picture over here, yeah. You want to take a picture over here? Yeah. You're not going to mention the face, huh? They're done? I think we're going to speak for Ms. Audra. No, no, no. More pictures? No. We're done with that. Okay. Y'all got to recognize this. No, no, we're going to talk. Stay up. Stay up here. Just the pictures are done. Stay up. I'm going to ask Joel again. Sure. Hi, Audra. How are you doing? Good. It is a great pleasure to be here with Audra as well. I've had the pleasure of working with her for quite some time when she was at bus traffic control. So when I was hired, she then became a bus traffic controller at the time that I used to work very closely with bus operations, and she was extremely helpful. She's extremely knowledgeable of our system. I also had the great pleasure of working and knowing her mom, and she was also someone that was, just like Audra, very dedicated to ensuring that she can get the job done. Audra started working as a temp with us, I believe, and then she also went over to our planning department. She worked in scheduling and planning. She also served in paratransit, then returned back to our planning division before going back to our bus traffic control center. So she's worked in a lot of different areas that impact a lot of the different individuals because by serving as in planning, she worked a lot with the transportation disadvantage group where she was working very aggressively to provide service to individuals that really required assistance. And the same thing when she worked in the paratransit. And now she provides a lot of assistance to our bus operators, especially those that work overnight because that's the shift that she works on. And our individuals, they're all important, and everybody has different challenges. But when you're working overnight and you're driving a bus, there are different challenges that you don't encounter during the day. And Audra's the person that is there to assist them with those. And for that, we are extremely grateful. Thank you very much. Ms. Andrews, you can't cry now. Let me tell y'all something. I had the pleasure of working with Ms. Andrews for so many years. She has driven me crazy throughout the years. I even had the opportunity when I was training with her working overnight. You cannot go to sleep with Ms. Andrews overnight. She just won't allow you. And I was just so marveled about her work ethic. You know, she would joke and say, I'm not an octopus boss. I can't do all of this stuff. But she always got her job done. She was always able to make the right decisions at the right time. And if she needed any support or any help, she always knew who to call. So I really, really admired that about her. And she always talked about family as well. And I could see why her family is here. She does everything for her family. As a matter of fact, she says she's not even going to retire because she has to work for you guys. But, Audra, this is your day. And I appreciate everything that you have done, everything that you have impacted for us, everything that we asked you to do. Although you might be a little, you know, boisterous about it, you still get it done. And I really appreciate that. Thank you, Audra. Where do I start? So we all speak about her working overnight. And I've never seen this look. So I guess because I'm not used to seeing her this time of day, this is the look that she gives us. But I do want to thank you for everything that you've done, contributed to this department, to everyone here, how you personally touched everyone. If you know her, you know she has a big family. If you're from Coconut Grove, everybody knows her. You can't go anywhere around Miami-Dade County where she doesn't know anyone or she isn't related to anyone in Miami-Dade County. So she becomes family with everyone here. She's personally touched all of us. Again, speaking of her working overnight, she is kind of like the person that says she's the night watch. So she oversees everything overnight with bus operations, and she makes sure everything is done. And she does come with a lot of knowledge. She's very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very vocal. And she says it how it is, no matter how you like it. But we do appreciate that about her. So congratulations on this achievement and this moment. We love you. We appreciate everything that you do. This is just remarkable, and your family being here. So congratulations. My name is Woody Wilson, and I am Audra's brother-in-law, the family. I am part of this family. I love her professionalism and her attitude. I think you heard that echo from a few other gentlemen here, that attitude. I mean, you're going to pay attention when she talks. I got a story that I'm going to leave something out there in the atmosphere with you. We, I am, the organization that I'm with, we share the same attorney. And we were at a convention, and one of our attorneys saw me, and he ran up to me. I'm like, what's this little corner people? And Audra's your sister-in-law, I'm like, yeah. He gave me some words, the attitude factor, and what she said in the meeting and what took over. And we got a good one out of that one because you couldn't play her radio. She had to play her radio for you. I love you, sis. Keep it going. Keep it going. Good morning again. I would like to thank all of my supervisors, Mr. Joel Perez, who's always there to listen to me, whatever I want to talk to him about. Mr. Yoda, Omar, that I could depend on to make him laugh. And these nice young men right here, Mr. St. Hugh, I trained, and I'm older than he is. And he became my boss, but he told me when I was training him, I'm going to be your boss. And I'm so proud of him. And then I trained Mr. Hollis that told me the same thing, that one day he was going to be my boss. So it's amazing that how I could train people to become my boss, which no one can be my boss at transit, and they know that because I am the boss. But I thank the county for allowing me to have these 30 years. I didn't know how I was going to do it. And if I didn't have that lady right there, my sister, to help me to say, keep your mouth closed at them people's job, I don't know where I'll be. But I thank all my friends at transit, and I thank everybody for just letting me be me. Next we have Mr. Hermikio Freeman, if you can join us in the well, join us with your family and colleagues and friends. 30 years of service. Let's get a round of applause for Mr. Freeman. While he's walking down, I just want to remind everyone, all the people who work at the Department of Transportation and Public Works move millions of people every year. Last year, this team moved over 184 million people on transit. So a big shout-out to everything that they do. Unsung heroes. Oh, okay. Great. Great to hear that. Yeah. Well, it's a pleasure to be here with Mr. Freeman. Mr. Freeman has 30 years of service for us, and he works on our bus division as a bus officer. So he is extremely important because he makes sure that every vehicle that leads our division that is assigned to him is properly fueled, that is properly cleaned, and is in great conditions for that our customers can ride it in the morning as well as our bus operator. So his job entails helping not only our customers, but also our bus operators, and for that we are extremely grateful. So every single bus that you see out there, if it happened to have been assigned to him for that night, he is the person that we need to thank for making sure that that bus goes out there properly fueled and clean, for that everyone can utilize it on that given day. And for that, Mr. Freeman, we are extremely grateful, and thank you so much. USA? USA. Hi. My name is Jermikio Freeman. Oof. Two years ago, I lost my mom. This for you, mom? She always said, you're going to make sure I swear. You're going to get 30 years. I said, mom, I want 40. I almost made it. I just don't get credit for the other five. 35 years I've been in the county. It's a long ride. She looked, she said, I said, you know what? You're my only son, and I see her right now and today. She never went, she never went, she never went, she never went, she never went, she right here standing beside me. I know she is a beautiful lady. She, last thing I can say, she said, she put me out the house. 16 years old, I'll never forget it. When she got me an apartment at 16 years old, put it under her name. I was doing some bad things. You know, normal things kids do, normal stuff. She said, you know what, baby? When you come back to me, you're going to be a grown man. I said, man, I'm 16 years old. I don't know how to pay no rent and lights and all that. You got a job, you're going to learn today. I said, man, okay, well, I guess when the bills come, I'll pay them. I'm working at a local grocery store. By the way, I was born Overtown, raised up Overtown. So, you know, people got a tendency of thinking all Overtown people is low-income people. The devil is a liar. The best came from Overtown. And if you go over the bridge in Little Havana, the best came from Overtown in Little Havana. So they can say what they want to say. It is what it is. But, yeah, 16, two years ago, we buried her. And I told her why she was laying in the coffin. I said, you remember what you said? I'm that grown man again. I came back. Yeah. I made it back home. I said, Mom, I made it back home, Mom. I made it back home. And it's like I looked in the coffin. She looked at me like, you made it, baby. 35 bills. Wow. If it went for Dade County, it pushed me every day. Get up. Go to work. I said, wow. I had a daughter. She helped me raise my daughter and stuff. So, you know, we did it. Been knowing her for 27 years. 27 years. You know what I'm saying? Hopefully one day, get that ring on my finger. But the push, it was the push with her, my mom. The county saved my life. So, and the county saved, it's a lot of us have stories out here. I'm quite sure we can tell, but it is what it is. We made it. Simple as that. I want to thank you guys for giving me the opportunity to come in through the county and recognize, you know, to raise my family, to meet this young lady that I met here 27 years ago. I met her 27 years ago. I was carrying the mail here and there for transit. Matter of fact, became an employee of the money, maybe about 10 times. I don't know. I know it was five in Metro Rail, maybe five in bus too. So, became an employee 10 times. So, you know, so that goes to show, you know, how dedicated I was. Even her, the last story, even her, she goes, hey, babe. Called me one day. I'm at night, working at night. I'm about to get in the bus and fuel it. Hey, babe. And I said, hey, babe. I said, huh? This dedication. I didn't even know my daughter was finna graduate from school. It was her the one that told me. You know, the day, you know, the night, Jameika Burke, we got to go, we got to get dressing, go to the graduation. What graduation? Who graduating? Your daughter, fool. My daughter finna graduate already? That's just how fast time flew. Never knew my daughter finna graduate. Man, that's dedication. And I know once I leave here, it's going to be hard to adjust because this was, County was my second home. Thank you guys, man. And enjoy the retirement. I'm going to hang around a little more longer and do what I got to do. You know, people say, oh, man, whenever God calls, that's what it is. So I told mom, I'll be there with you. I ain't going to say soon, but I'm going. I'm going. Thank you. Next, we are going to celebrate Ms. Marcia Steelman. Marcia Steelman, please join us. 30 years of service if you'll join me in a round of applause for Ms. Steelman. I survived. That's all I have to say. It's been a great ride and a pleasure to serve the community. But that's all I have to say. We have a little more to say than that. Thank you. So you've just recently joined us here at DTPW. You actually came to us from Durham. And we were very excited when the team from our stormwater team moved over from Durham. But you've had a wonderful ride here at the county, but you've also worked internationally and you've had a vast career. You are a wonderful asset to us with all of your knowledge regarding stormwater, stormwater modeling, and all of those resources. She is the one that kind of has helped you make sure that your flood insurance has stayed low over the years, which is really important for homeowners. So thank her. But again, we have so many unsung heroes behind the scenes that are so important to us here at the county. So Ms. Steelman, thank you so much for your service. We really appreciate it. Hold on. Hold on. Come back. We are now going to our amazing aviation department. If Director Coutier can join us. You know, I have a list of the members of our team that we are recognizing today. And this one really kind of stands out. If we can welcome Mr. Bartle Allen, 45 years of service. Everybody up. Okay. You're the man of the hour. Okay. I'll try to be brief, but 45 years is a long time. It is a long time. So, as you know, Commissioner, we're one of the busiest airports in the world. We continue to grow. Number of passengers, cargo, et cetera. But what makes the airport special are our employees, the more than 1,800 employees that work with us. And the people, like Bartle. I mean, he started out with us as a landslide operations specialist 45 years ago. Worked his way up now to a landslide senior agent. I mean, he's out there making sure that the traffic on our upper and lower drives are moving, that it's maintained, that any cars that are parked, where they're not supposed to be get towed, and our parking garages, all the enforcement there is handled properly, et cetera. But a tremendous amount of dedication being out in the elements, whether it's cold, hot, for 45 years is a tremendous testament to his dedication. So, Bartle, thank you so much for all your years of service. You can tell by everybody here what you mean to everybody, everybody that showed up for you. So, does anybody want to say anything, or if not? Hello, everyone. My name is Michelle Bart. It's been 10 years since I've known you. I loved our experience together. I move up the ranks. You've been there with me, supported me throughout every position that I've gone into. You were that person that I could count on. When I saw your name on the schedule relieving me, I knew you were coming in, and I was very happy for that. Any questions, concerns, you were always there for me. Thank you. Okay, I didn't know we were going to be giving speeches, so I'm not prepared. I had nothing in mind. What's kept me going initially in my job, and to a certain extent, this entire time, is the opportunity to help people out. Whether they just be lost at the airport, or whether they have more serious problems for us to be able to help, that's what keeps me going. I had initially planned to retire at about 20 years, but they say, if you want to hear God laugh, tell me your plans. And I met this cute little Colombiana who worked at the airport. So first comes love, then comes marriage, and then along came two baby carriages. So my sons are now 16 and 20, and I love serving everybody at the airport, but my wife says, I need to come home and serve my family. So I'll be looking for retirement fairly soon. But I so much appreciate the opportunity that the Aviation Department gave me to do everything, to accomplish what I've accomplished. And I thank the Aviation Department, I thank everybody here, and I thank all of you. Thank you so very much. Next, we will recognize Ms. Renata Jenkins. This could take a while, too. So Renata's been with the department for 40 years straight. And she's worked her way up the ranks, and she's now the executive secretary to another soon-to-be honoree that we're going to recognize in a few minutes, our assistant director. But what makes her special, and she's an extremely hard worker, extremely dedicated. She comes to work where she's sick, feeling bad, but the best thing about her is that smile. No matter what, and I mean, our administration and HR division deal with about 1,800 employees, unions, et cetera. I mean, not all of them are easy people to deal with, and she always has that great smile. She's very disarming. Her demeanor really, really makes a difference for all of us. So Renata, thank you so much. In the 14 years I've known you, you've been nothing but, forget about professional. You're just a person of high character, and we love you at the department. Hopefully you're not planning on going anywhere anytime soon. But what you see is that you get just a shiny ray of positivity and sunshine in the department. Thank you so much for that. We appreciate that. Good morning. You're my rock. You know that. We're partners in crime in a nice way, but she keeps me grounded, and let me tell you, she has a loving heart. She loves her family dearly, especially this young man right here. This is her pride and joy, but I can tell you she's a joy to work with. The work we do is hard, without a doubt, but we try to make it fun, and we treat each other as family. We are a big family, you know, not only HR, but in all the areas that we cover. But it's the day-to-day. I always have her. She always has my back, and that is amazing. She's someone you can trust, you can depend on. You know, she'll let you have it. With a smile and everything, she'll let you have it, and a lot of us here know, God forbid, you're late for a meeting. Renata will tell you, and if you're putting the chairs in by the table, oh my God, you're in trouble. But it's always with a lot of love, a lot of care, a lot of joy, and they're hard days, without a doubt. She knows when I'm off, she can read me like a book. It's amazing, but we have a great family. It's, you know, primarily her. Yohanka, where's Yohanka? And I, but we truly care for each other and depend on her. She's been with me, like, for what, 20? We've been together for the past 20-plus years. And it's amazing, and it's a privilege for me to be here with her and her with me. We kind of forced each other to be here, but it's, I think it's the best thing because we really care. And she's family. She's a true family. She even predicted my son's hair before he was born. And she's seen him throughout his life. So I love you very much. You know that. And hopefully we'll be together for many more years. So love you. Sorry I took so much time. You all happy. My name is Jose, and I used to be an employee of the aviation department. Renata and I worked pretty much in the same unit for eight years. And not just eight years, eight aviation years. It's more intense, intense, intense, intense. And I think everything is being said about her. But the fact is that she is the most positive person I know. I mean, just when her name is mentioned, it just draws a smile because she's just that good. Thus, her job continues. She's super dedicated. Renata, it's a real privilege to have worked with you. Good morning. My name is Bobbi. And I had the privilege, the privilege of having Renata work for me and with me as my secretary. When I tell you, I could not have asked for a better secretary. And I had the opportunity to get a secretary. And true story, I did not interview. I asked Jose if I could get her because something that she did from the time that she met me at the airport, she always looked out for everyone. If there was anything that I needed to know, she would call me and say, Bobby, this was before she was my secretary. You need to do X, Y, and Z. This is going on. And I appreciate that. When I tell you she covered me, I could not ask for a better person. She loves me. I love her. Even right now, being retired for 12 years, I can call her and she's available. And I really appreciate that. Renata, I love you. I'm going to get emotional. We have become, for the past 10 years, like the three musketeers. Yes. And more than teammates, we are family. We support each other. We've been working very hard days, cheerful days, but we have an unwavering face. And that's what keeps us together. Along with another powerful woman that I have the pleasure to work with, like Lisa, that was my next door neighbor. Like Nikki, in corrections. But this is a team that has become very powerful. My family, my anchor, and always together. And you're not going anywhere. You're not going anywhere. I asked about my baby. And this is amazing. It's amazing to celebrate this milestone together and be able to be cheerful for each other. And I'm very grateful for you. Good morning, everyone. My name is Coretta Baker. I've had the privilege of knowing Renata and working with Renata for the past 18 years. It's been a pleasure. She's become like family. We are a family. We are a team. Our families have grown together. Even when I became a grandmother, she was the first one to give me advice. She's just a real, really, really good person to be around. Her aura, her energy, a woman of faith, dedicated, loving. She will point you out. She will put you out there. She will tell you when you're wrong, but it all comes with love. And she will cover you. She will make sure that she has your back. Even when you're wrong, she will still have your back. Even when you're right, she will have your back. It's been a pleasure to work with you. We look forward to many more years working with you. Don't you go Noel. We're going to chase you down, and we're going to bring you back. We love you. Stay grounded. Stay who you are. Stay true to who you are. Thank you for everything. All of your years of service gives us something to look forward to as we continue our county service, hopefully to get to where you are. We love you. Good afternoon. Good morning again. I had the privilege of working in the aviation department. It's probably my third department that I had worked with. And as Barbara mentioned, you talk about fun. It's probably the best department that I've worked in so far. Not neglecting the other departments or anything. They're good, but aviation is a different story. That team there between Barbara, Renata, and Yohanka, they're a strong team, and they keep HR together, right? And Renata is like that strong knot that makes everything happen. Every department or everybody needs a friend. And when I was there in aviation, Renata was that friend for me. And we still talk and try to do this. We still talk daily. I mean, not daily, but weekly. A lot. Let's put it that way. And she's just true. She's real, just like Greta says. And she just keeps everything holding together. And Renata, thank you for being buddy. Thank you for being my buddy. All right. This is my sister-in-law, and I would like to say she's not one of the best. She is the best. And I would just like to congratulate you on 40 years of service. Thank you, brother. My sister. This is my sister, Renata. This is my rock. I love her so much. 40 years. I know it's been hard, but you made it. And I love you. And you keep striving every day. I'm just so emotional because my sister, she's standing up here looking like our mom. And when I did my 30 years, I regretted not coming because my mom was alive. But thank everybody for everything that you said about me. I have enjoyed my whole 40 years at aviation. At aviation. And everybody that I have come in contact with has been wonderful. You know, everything is not pieces and cream all the time. You know, but I have truly enjoyed working with every single one of you. Everybody. I really appreciate it. Thank you all for recognizing me and being grateful for me because I am grateful. And this is my everything. This is my next chapter in my life. What am I losing? Been there, done that, got the t-shirt for it. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Everybody. Can you step back two steps? Big smiles, big smiles. If you can put in that gap really quick, please. Thank you. Let's go right here. Big smiles, big smiles. One, two, and let's do one more thing. Let's say aviation on three. One, two, three. Emitation. Emitation. Emitation. I mean, please stop. Take it. You want to go? Okay. We can do the stop. That's fine. Jacqueline. Jacqueline Evariste, 30 years of service. Jacqueline, there he is. Please welcome and give a round of applause for Mr. Evariste. I think you wanted to take the picture first. Congratulations. You've got to sit up for the picture. They want to take the picture first. Hold on to your award. All right, let's take this picture real quick. Let's go on three, one, two, excuse me. One, two, three. Okay, so Jacqueline, congratulations on your 30 years. Jacqueline started out with the Water and Sewer Department as a semi-skilled laborer, came over to aviation in 2000, worked his way up the ranks. He's now an airport maintenance mechanic in our electrical division. So he makes sure that all of our electrical systems are up and running, either whether it's a repair or maintenance of that. Obviously, we're a huge place, and it's important that the lights stay on. So he's one of the guys that are the behind-the-scenes heart and soul of our department that keep things running for our department. So Jacqueline, we're very, very grateful for all the work that you do. Thank you for everything. Hopefully, you're planning on staying a little while longer or much longer. But anyway, we appreciate everything you do. But with that, does anybody want to say anything real quick? Okay, so Victor Franz Cuervo, the Aviation Facilities, and Mr. Barista, as Mr. Goutier said, he's been with us for quite a bit. And he, like I, came from Water and Sewer over to aviation. And we really appreciate everything he does for our electric shop. He's the one who keeps the lights running, everything powered up. When we have issues, he's the guy that we call. And like a prior speaker said, aviation years are not just single ratio years. You know, aviation is a nonstop department, and we really appreciate everything you do. Which one? Yeah. All the after-hours work, all the overtime, all the calls in the middle of the night that come into work. So we really thank you and appreciate, you know, for your lovely wife. My boss, my mom. Yes, yes, yes. So thank you very much. Good morning. Isaac Smith, Assistant Director of Facilities Management. Oh, man. Jacqueline is one of those kind of guys that you're proud to have him on your team. He gets it done. He never says no. He's one of those guys that never says no. He's always there, always punctual, always on time. And you can take for granted that it's being done. If it's assigned to him, just take for granted. But it'll get done. Jacqueline, it's an honor to have you to work for us. So congratulations. My new boss. Just want to talk. Hi. My name is Mike Toledo. I'm covering for my chief, Hiralo Gonzalez. And I have only known, I've only been here about three months, four months, and I've known him for a short period of time. But what I do know of him, he's a very comical guy, very funny. And that's always something that's very good to have in the group. I look forward to working more with you, and congratulations for all your years. Thank you to Paulette May coming over here. That Miami-Dade County Special Airport is the second, first, best place I've worked since I left Haiti. In 1981, I was working at SS Norway, one of the best companies. Surely, they don't pay. But for experience, it's one of the best places to be after Miami-Dade. Thank you for everything. I said thank you to my wife, too. She's the one who, if I don't eat every day, she's the cause of that. Because she always prepare my lunch like a box, like a baby. She go and send to school. That's the reason always my stomach was so big. Sorry for the people who get it. But now, she don't allow me to eat anything outside, nothing, you know. Once again, thank you, all bosses who trust me, who understand my job, my responsibility as a maintenance mechanic. Surely, I don't have license. I don't know for what reason I don't have it, but I went to school for it. I never have, on my mind, too good for the test. But anything on the airport, with a contractor, I can't tell them any place and anywhere they send me. And all Miami, especially those aviation departments from TNT all the way to Miami International Airport. Once again, thank you for everything. Thank you. You got the big photo. Oh, another one? Okay, so next. ...missing, Miss Barbara Jimenez, 30 years. I'm going to come out here. You're very welcome. Thank you. You got flowers? Yeah. I wasn't the one who got it for me. Maurice. So thank Maurice. Okay, so you already heard Barbara speak a little bit. But a true testament to what people think of you is when you have two former bosses show up, and that applies to both Barbara and Renata. You had my dear friend, Jose Abreu, former aviation director, and Bobby Wilford-Jones, who used to have Barbara's job. Both showed up and took time out of their busy days to come here for them. That speaks volumes. I cannot top that in words, right? So thank you for being here. I want to make sure I recognize that, because that's how special these two ladies are. So Barbara, I've known now for the last almost 14 years that I've been with the department. To say that she's dependable and professional, you know, words don't kind of begin to express that. I mean, her and her family, they're notorious for loving Hawaii. They've been there, I don't know how many times. I have, unfortunately, have had to reach out to her, and she'll pick up the phone from Hawaii. Barbara, I'm sorry if I bother you. No, I'm in Waikiki. Okay. But she picks up, and she answers the phone. She has that next level of dedication, which you don't really see, and forget about the county, in anything. So I am very much appreciative, not just for all the work that she does, what a great leader she is, but I'm even more appreciative for the high-character person. She's a great mom, a great wife, an exceptional human being, and I am very proud not only to call her a colleague, but a dear friend. So, Barbara, with that, thank you so much for everything you do. I know she's not going anywhere, so I can say that for a fact. And we're very, very grateful for everything you do. What she said is true. I mean, she deals with 1,800-plus employees, the unions, union negotiations, you know, complaints, all kinds of stuff like that. And she does it with a plum, with a smile, and with a lot of grace. And for that, we're extremely blessed to have her and very grateful. So with that, does anybody else want to say anything? Speaking of privileges, it is truly a privilege for me to have worked with Barbara. I mean, he said a lot of things. They're all true about Barbara, but I can tell you she is an MVP. She is the ultimate professional, assertive, dedicated, experienced, treats everybody with respect and professionalism, listens to everybody, but she can hold her own ground if she has to. I can tell you that. And the best thing about her is the way she researches the issues. Research brings better decisions and less overreaction, which, you know, not healthy. It is a true honor to be here for you, Barbara, and the Aviation Department. In fact, Commissioner, I'll have you know that this is the first time I step in here for the last 14 years. Last time they lent me back this time. I don't know. It must be a new guy. Barbara, thank you. Everyone here knows I would not have made it without you. I mean, assuming that I made it. I mean, but thank you very much. Eternally grateful. Thank you. Barbara, thank you again for the privilege of having you be part of my team and being family. You start out, you know, as coworkers, and it evolves into family. I mean, being part of every milestone, that's important. And also having the ability, I mean, like everything Jose said, she is a, I mean, she is phenomenal. And this is what, again, being available after my retirement. I'm working on a project at a college here, and she took time out of her schedule to join me at the college to help young people who are trying to graduate and, you know, transition into the work world. She took the time out of her, and I called her, I said, I need some help. Can you help me? She was there. And, Barbara, I appreciate it. Love you, Mikey and Mike. Thank you. Okay. And thank you. And, like I said, just a phenomenal team. And I couldn't have done it without these two ladies. When I tell you, they kept me straight from the time I hit the door until the time I left. And they had the courage. This is something that you need to do, have courage. That when you see your supervisor heading down the right path, have the courage to close the door and say, I think we need to talk. And then supervisors, listen, because we don't always know everything. Thank you. Good morning, all. My name is Toni, but more importantly, I am honored to have this woman as a supervisor, as a friend, as a confidant, my travel partner. But more importantly, she's a true leader. She exemplifies professionalism, kindness, gentleness. But more importantly, her dedication is admirable. You cannot have a better boss, friend, or confidant. And I appreciate you for everything that we do together, that we will continue to do together. Okay? Because, again, I know you have many, many years. And we will. We have our challenges. God knows. Barbara and I are on the phone the weekends, after hours. We text each other. But it's worth it because we love what we do. And more importantly, I want to thank the three of these women. They welcomed me into aviation. I've been with aviation now, going on six years. And they treated me like family from day one, from helping me move my stuff from labor relations to taking me to credentialing, to opening their arms, their hearts, teaching me the ropes. I can't ask for a better group, including the rest of my staff that is here. I thank you all. Everyone that I've worked with, I appreciate you all for everything you've done. Barbara, congratulations. Mike and Mikey, you have an awesome woman. Okay? Thank you, Tony. I've been working with Barbara for about 20 years, and she has been wonderful. And as a matter of fact, her working for Jose got me to see what an assistant does. She was his executive assistant. And she showed me how, you know, what I know, because she is very thorough. She ain't going to stop until, you know, she gets it done. And I really appreciate you for all that you do for me. We're like family. We're with each other every single day, more than our families. So I really, really appreciate you, and I love you, and I'm always here for you and everybody else. And among all these beautiful things, she's a woman on speed, always 1,000 miles per hour, delivering. And it's been a pleasure, and it's been a school. We have learned, I have learned a lot from her. She's a strong woman, very thorough, very knowledgeable, and it's been a pleasure to be together with these two that have become my family as well, that we are from thick to thin, together. And it's an amazing day to celebrate both and to celebrate you with your families, and we'll continue delivering excellent service. I want to say thank you so much for my mom. She has worked her absolute everything off in order to make it to the position. Don't worry, I'm not going to curse. She has worked everything. She wasn't born here. She's an immigrant from Cuba. She worked absolutely insanely to make it to where she is now. She has, like, I think she has a master's, if I'm correct. Okay, good. She has done it all, and every day she puts in her everything. And I just want to say thank you so much for that, and also really quickly, thank you so much for our work friends that know way more about me. I think Vicky should come here, like, move closer because she's really close to my mom, and I think she has a lot to say. Okay. Thank you, Vicky. I love you. This woman right here, she was a co-worker. I didn't know her when I first started. Yep. 2001. Yep. I didn't know anybody, really. And after a year with the county, slowly she opened her arms. She listened. She gave me strength because I went through a lot personally. Moving forward, I had another tragedy in my life, and this woman right here was still emotionally and financially, and I thank you for being such a great work. Don't say that. And, friend, I love you, and I'm so proud of you. I'm proud of you, too. I'm proud of you. Thank you. Thank you, Vicky. Just Marky. I just want to say it after listening to every one of you talk about my wife and how she's been part of your work and help you one way or another one, I want to apologize for any time you call home after hours, and I curse. And so now I understand, I really, really understand that you guys are like a big family that make this city that we love together. Make no mistake. What you guys do there, no one really realizes how hard that job is. I've been with Barbara for 25 years, pretty much the same job, and I can't believe how you guys go through this every day. So thank you to everybody that is here with her, and thank you, baby, for this amazing 25 years. This is emotional, but first I want to thank God for the privilege of working for Miami-Dade County. And like some of us say here affectionately, I love aviation, and we love aviation. Aviation is my home. It's been my life for many years. And just to tell you a really quick story, my father, who's passed, taught me to drive many years ago, and believe it or not, it was around the aviation department. It was like when they were like the warehouses. And I always dreamt of working for aviation since those days, and I can honestly say now that my dream did come true. So I'm privileged. I started with water and sewer, and in 2000 came to aviation. I've had really, really great mentors. And I'm honored that Bobby, who, believe it or not, when I got to aviation, a year after brought me under her wing. And she's been a great mentor throughout, knows my family, knows her family. And then later on, when Jose came over in 2005, his wife, as a matter of fact, a dear friend, too, recommended me to him. So I can honestly tell you that them, too, have been great mentors in my life and continue to be. And oftentimes, I reach out to Bobby for advice, because I know she's gone through it. So I can tell you that it's been a very rewarding career, very difficult at times. Our jobs sometimes are very thankless. And I always say this, and with a lot of pride, no one calls you to say, hi, how are you, how are you doing? No, they call you with a problem. But you know what gives me great pride is that we're able to address those problems. We work for the people. We work for our employees day in and day out. And that's what we do. It can be very stressful. It is. Because sometimes you get a call, and it's like, what the heck happened? But, you know, you have to turn around, take a deep breath, and figure out how you're going to resolve it. And that's teamwork. I have the best team I could ever ask for. Not only the girls, but Tony, James, Maurice, you know, my boss, Basil, he's always in the back there, you know, and all my colleagues here. And obviously, I would be remiss if I didn't thank my family, my husband, my son, especially Mike. Yes, he's put out, especially during Jose, a lot of calls, nonstop. And even, you know, thank you, honey, thank you, thank you. And my son, too. But it's grateful. It's a great, gratifying job. And also PIOD Virginia. She's an amazing ally. And my work husband, he couldn't be here, but Eneldo. I tell him when Eneldo calls, I got to drop everything and talk to him. So it's very grateful. And I want to close by saying that someone very wise taught me that in order for you to be successful, you have to want a lot of people to be successful. And you need to have a lot of people behind you. So I do feel that all of you are behind me. And today, I feel successful thanks to you, my aviation, my county family, and my family. So thank you from the bottom of my heart for this privilege for working for all of you and with you. Our last honoree for the Aviation Department, Mr. Junior Spencer, 35 years, Junior Spencer. These are our last one. Yes. Can you stay up here, please? Let's take this quick picture. Okay, let's take the picture first. This is our last one. Be quick. Yeah. We're going to take the picture first? Yes, picture first, please. Back hiding. Move up a little bit, please. All right. Let's go right here. Big smile. Let's go right here. Big smile. One, two. Hold on a second. One more for good luck. Thank you. Still stay up here? You stay up here? You stay? Yes. Stay. You stay. We're good. Quick. Okay, I'll be quick. Okay, so real quick. Junior is kind of like the quintessential success story. He started out with our department 35 years ago, working in the grounds maintenance crew, mowing the grass, and picking up trash. And he worked his way up, studied hard, worked hard. He's kind of like a shining example of the American dream. Got his journeyman's license in AC, and he's now a refrigeration mechanic in our AC shop and does a tremendous job. Again, passengers don't like it when it's hot. So he makes sure that he keeps our terminals, not only at MIA, but at our GIA airport, cool. But imagine, starting where he started and working his way up to where he is now. Tremendous American success story. So, Junior, thank you so much for everything you do. Congratulations. Very proud of you. I'm very blessed and grateful for your service. Thank you. You've got to be quick. Okay, real quick. Again, thank you, Mr. Spencer. He's a privileged working for Junior, working with Junior. The airport, again, the airport, we have 28 chiller plants. We have the fourth largest chiller plant, which keeps the terminal cool. And this gentleman is part of the reason why that system keeps working every day, day in and day out. You know, we have 104-degree temperatures out here. So thank you for your help. You know, the passengers really appreciate everything you've done over the years. And you have a beautiful family. So thank you. You sure? Yeah. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you to our aviation department. Next, we'd like to welcome our water and sewer department. And our first honoree is Ms. Estella Gray. Okay, so we're going to do water and sewer. Estella Gray. Estella Gray. What was that on? Anna. Good morning. Mr. Coutier, you guys had your party. It's like their social media page. It was having way too much fun. Ms. Gray, thank you very much for your years of service. Director Fink was not able to be here today, but it's very important to him to celebrate all the years of service that you've given to Miami-Dade County, especially our water and sewer department. And my voice isn't always like this. I'm working on my best Barry White impression this morning. So I'm not going to talk long, but I'd like to be able to celebrate this with your coworkers. And who is here for Ms. Gray? Good morning. I had so much to say about Donna Gray and Estella Gray. And so I wrote it. So give me just a moment and I'll read it to you. Today it's my honor to recognize Donna Gray for an incredible milestone, 30 years of dedicated service with Miami-Dade Water and Sewer. 30 years of service is a remarkable achievement, and Donna has truly made a lasting impact. I have had the pleasure of knowing Donna for about 17 years as a coworker, as a lead worker, and most importantly, as a friend. Throughout the years, Donna has proven herself to be a dedicated employee who knows her job very well. She is dependable, hardworking, and never seeks recognition for simply doing what needs to be done. Her commitment and professionalism and quiet excellence speaks for itself. Donna is an uncomplicated person with a kind heart, and it has been a privilege to work alongside her. This recognition could not happen to more of a deserving person. Donna, thank you for your 30 years of faithful service and the positive impact you have made on all of us. Congratulations, well-earned milestone, and may God continue to bless you with good health, happiness, and many more years. Congratulations. Thank you. Sir? Donna. Hi. 27 years that I've known Donna, right? When I got there, we were in a trailer back there on Northwest 7th Street. 90% of the staff, male, a bunch of young guys with no sense at all. We appreciate you bringing us some sense. Now we've grown up and some of us still don't have any sense. But we appreciate you, Donna. Anybody that's had to spend time with you is better for it. You're amazing. Forget about your employment here just as a person. And all the times that we've spent, every memory that I have with you, it's been great. Whether that's having dinner at People's or we have started bringing somebody's birthday over there in those trailers, playing cards back there. It's amazing. I really appreciate it personally. And 30 years, keep doing it. I can't say enough about you. I really can't. And let me tell you, there's a whole lot of people that aren't here that also appreciate you. So on behalf of your family and retail customer service and those who have retired and gone on, on their behalf, I thank you so much. I really appreciate you. Thanks. Thank you. Donna, as your current lead, I appreciate you so much. Your knowledge, your spirit. When you walk through the door, you greet everyone the same way, even outside in the lobby. Good morning, everyone, every day. You're a woman of God. We have plenty of conversations. And you are such a jewel at Ward and Soar, the Caleb Division. Keep up the good work. I bless you. And I love you. I love you, too. Thank you. To God be the glory for everything. Five years. After five years, it wasn't a job. It was a career. And I wanted to do the best that I can do. I have so many people, not behind me, but in front of me, on the side of me, just holding me up any time I fell down. Miami-Dade, thank you so much. I never thought, never thought 30 years would come. Never. Being a meter reader, some of you guys, I probably read your meter. Some of you, I probably started your account. But I love what I'm doing. I can't say I'm a retired. I can't say I am. I can't say I'm not. But whatever God has for me, it's going to be for me. So I might call in tomorrow and say, Maylene, that's it. But I enjoy Miami-Dade. This is the best place. One thing I learned, and I'm going to pass the mic back. When I first got in here, they said, it's hard to get into the county. It's hard to get out. Thank you so much to all my family, my first lady, for taking the time out. We kind of hungry, so thank you so much. Y'all have a wonderful day. So we're going to go to Robert Stebbins. No, not me. I'm giving it out. Yes, sir. Picture, picture. No, he's super shy. Good morning, everybody. My name is Juan Curiel. I'm the Assistant Director of Utility Construction of the Water and Sewer Department. Robert, congratulations on a distinguished career. 30 years in construction is not easy. It is very difficult. But, hey, you've made it, and you continue moving forward. We're very happy for you. Today is your day. Today is your day as well. So, again, congratulations on a great career. It's been library, streets, pump stations, pipes, you name it. Jack of all trades. So, again, congratulations. Thank you. Good morning. Carlos Barrow, Senior Program Manager for Utility Construction. Robert, it's been a pleasure working with you these last couple years. I've actually known you when I first walked into Water and Sewer 10 years ago. You had an amazing career, like Juan said. You're experiencing construction of all the different things you've done. You're a resource to us, to the department, to me. You know, like I share, like, technical stuff with you, and then you share, like, your knowledge and years through the different departments. So, we really appreciate everything you do. You're an amazing guy. You're loved by a lot of people. And thank you so much. It's our honor to work with you. Thank you. Oops. Good morning. Good morning. If you wouldn't mind. Gentlemen, if you're not here, this is not real. It's not going to be the same. It's not real. When the band gets back together, to Robert, congratulations, sir, on your 30-year milestone with the county. But I'm going to take you back a little further than that. Imagine this young guy having driven a truck down to Florida for delivery. He said, hey, this is like a good place. And then guess what? Hurricane Andrew, and then all of a sudden, he got involved. I think you caught the Florida bug just a little bit before then, and you're never going to get rid of it. So congratulations on your 30-year milestone. We know it's a lot more than 30 years. And I've had the privilege of meeting Robert and then him actually interviewing me with Frank for a position. And then he became my boss. And I said, oh, this is interesting. But we've had a great time, and I appreciate your candor, your openness, and you willing to share with everyone here that I see and a lot more. And thank you very much for your experience here with the county. And, you know, upstairs, the elevator is stuck. That's why they're not all down here, right, from CIS. So congratulations again. Thank you. Wow. I didn't expect this, but Robert and I actually worked together. I started in GSA 20 years ago. And 20 years later, I'm here to congratulate Robert on his 30-year award. I've since moved on to other jobs, private sector now. But, you know, Robert is still a dear friend and a very esteemed colleague. And with that, I'll pass it over to another GSA veteran. Good morning. Yeah, GSA, ISD, PIOD. I think it's still PIOD now. I had the pleasure of working with Robert. He was my supervisor, my boss. I learned a lot. Got the call about this, and I said, oh, for sure, I'm there, man. So hopefully another 30. Congrats. Good morning. Yes, I was one of Robert's employees also. We did learn a lot, and he was the one that kept us working and going forward. And that was GSA. Then you moved what, to Port of Miami? GSA was one sewer. We're one sewer. But you're back at your home. I'm home. You're our home. Well, congratulations, sir, and many years more. Congratulations, Robert. Thank you, my friend. It's been a long time. This man over here, he's very open, brave. You helped me raise a lot of money for the breast cancer. I came back from surviving breast cancer, and he put up a lot, and he did the walk. He went for the walk. He dressed in pink, and I thank you for all the breast cancer survivors. Thank you. Thank you. We sold a lot of T-shirts. No? Don't be shy now. So I really can't believe it's been 30 years. It's been a lot of fun. It's been amazing. I've had the pleasure of working at a couple of different departments. I started at Water and Sewer, and I'm back at Water and Sewer. Water and Sewer has always been my home. There's a family here with this department that I've never felt anywhere else. And the supervisors that I've had have always been mentors and friends. And I've learned a lot. And look at Pearl laughing. You should be up here, Pearl. And Keith, too. You know, these guys are more than just colleagues. They're all friends of mine. And it really has been an amazing journey. And I'm glad that Jenny's here with me and Mila's here. You want to say hi? And I'm really honored and proud to see so many of my friends and colleagues that came out to celebrate. And we're all going to go to Garcia's for lunch afterwards. So come join us. Okay, thank you. Igor Janowski, step up, sir. Yes, sir. So we just celebrated Robert on the construction side of things with the pipelines and the pump station. And Igor is one step before that on the design side of things. So 30 years, Igor. Congratulations. We haven't worked too long together, but I can already say that I know when you say something to me, you say it to me straight, right? You tell me what's up, and you always come with your unique sense of humor and put a smile on my face. So that's something I have definitely enjoyed the past six months or so I've got. You're welcome. And I will hand the mic to some people that have worked with you for a little bit longer. Thank you, Amanda. My name is Victor Delgado. I'm a senior program manager with the engineering division of Water and Sewer. I've known Igor for 20 years, and today it's my honor to recognize him for 30 years of dedicated service to the county, to the residents, to the Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department. Igor started in 1996 working in survey and assisting many projects, and then he moved on to engineer one and then engineer two in 1997, taking on bigger responsibilities, working on planning, designing, and permitting and procurement of the many water and sewer projects, pipelines, force mains, pump stations. He says pump station is his favorite field, designing pump stations, and he's done over 100 of them throughout the years and countless miles of pipeline projects. So he leaves a footprint in this county and the many projects that he's worked on. Igor, thank you for 30 years of service and your dedication. It's been a privilege to work with you, and it's a great team. Thank you for everything, and hope that you continue. We will talk. Yes, but it will go to six months. Okay. All right. Thank you. Thank you very much, Yoruba. Hello. My name is Alessandra Monetti. I was Igor's prior supervisor for about, I've known Igor for a little over a year and a half, so I wanted to say a few words. I've had the pleasure of working with Igor over the last year and a half, and during that time I've seen him grow tremendously in his role as project manager. What stands out to me the most is that even after 30 years with the county, he continues to learn, adapt, and improve, and I think that's a great reminder to all of us that growth never stops, no matter how much experience we have. Experience doesn't mean you start growing. It means you never stop learning. So congratulations on this incredible 30-year milestone, Igor. It's a remarkable achievement, and I'm grateful to have worked with you. Thank you. Thank you very much. I appreciate it. Can you say something, Igor? You know, so many people just don't say something nice. I just want to say only one phrase. Thank you very much. I really appreciate it. Thank you. Thanks. Thank you, everybody. Everybody, can you have a big shift? Okay. We're going to call up Albert Davis. Mr. Davis. Albert Davis. I get to set my alarm every day to Al because, thank you. I want to say a couple quick words about Mr. Davis before Pablo steals the mic from me. But without Al, our folks in the southern Dade County wouldn't have water every day. He's responsible for, and it may not be as much, but it's a huge area, and there's several different wells that he works to ensure every day they're running. And we get those phone calls in the middle of the night. We got low pressure out someplace, whether it's the boys' camp or our friends in Homestead, and he's the guy making sure that our stuff is took care of. And I know that because every time he goes into a facility, I get a text message, and believe me, my phone is beeping all night long. So thank you. And you can't retire yet. But one of the coolest things is this year, Al's team actually, with all of our plants inside of Miami-Dade, his team won the best water tasting. So he pulls it out of the Biscayne Aquifer, gives it a little shot of chlorine. He did some special magic this year that he's not going to tell us about, and he had the best water. So I think Ponce is coming for you this year. Pablo is coming for you. Coro is coming for you. But thank you very much for your service and dedication to the county. So I'm going to read a few words here that Venus Alvarez prepared. She'll kill me if I don't read this. So, Albert Davis is a dedicated water treatment professional with more than 30 years of service at the Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Department. He began his career in May 1996 as a water treatment plant operator trainee, where he focused on obtaining his water treatment plant license and building a strong foundation in the operation and maintenance of public drinking water systems. In February 2017, Albert was promoted to treatment plant operator II, spent four years at the Preston Water Treatment Plant, further strengthening his operational expertise. His commitment to public health, regulatory compliance, and efficient plant performance led to his promotion in December 2021 to treatment plant supervisor. As supervisor of the South Dade Water System, Albert oversees daily operations and ensures the continuous delivery of high-quality drinking water to the South Dade community. Under his leadership, the facility achieved a historic milestone in 2025 by earning the award for best-tasting drinking water in the internal WASDE competition, an exceptional accomplishment for one of the department's smaller treatment plants. Albert's career reflects his deep technical knowledge, leadership capability, and unwavering dedication to delivering safe, reliable drinking water to the residents of Miami-Dade County. Now, I've known Albert off and on for the last 20 or so years. I came over from the city of North Miami as a supervisor at the Alexander Water Treatment Plant. And eventually, he came up on my radar at the South Dade System under the leadership of Mike Brady. And then at some point, we went years there. I don't know how many years you were at the South Dade System before he motivated himself, got his B license, got his TPO2 status, and went up to Preston. And I was very pleased and happy when I found out that he had applied to interview for the supervisor position once Mike Brady retired. I don't think there's anybody after Brady, Arthur Baldwin, who also retired, that knows more about that system than Al Davis, Albert Davis. And he's been, for me, I'm his supervisor now. I'm blessed to have this gentleman down there. It took him a good six months of blowing up my phone nonstop because he's such a meticulous individual, perfectionist. He did not want to fail, and he wanted to show and prove that he was up to the task. And one day, I just told him, listen, you got this. You know what to do. I trust you. I'm dealing with other issues at the time. Go ahead and do your thing. Do what you do because I add reliability in this individual. He has not let me down. The only time I need to concern myself is, and I'm sure distribution, it's probably fed up with you a little bit with all the water main breaks that we have down there occasionally because these facilities, and I'll name them, it's Leisure City, Noranja, Newton, Elevated Tank, and Everglades. Did I miss one? No. Okay. Together, on average, they produce about 8 to 9 million gallons of water a day, a maximum of 14 million gallons of water a day. These are five facilities spread out that take care of select communities, select areas between Leisure City and Homestead while they're small. This system also supports the Turkey Point nuclear plant and the prison. So when they go down, they're so small that they don't have a lot of redundancy. So when there's an emergency down there, we're losing water. These small facilities are shutting down. We recently got them some laptops for their on-call to be more efficient thanks to his foresight. You know, he needed the equipment. We got it for him. But again, I trust him tremendously. He's been a true asset. I hope you're not even thinking about retiring. And thank you for your service, you know, and I hope you have 20 or 30 more. Thank you. I don't know if, come on, you got to say something. I'm Al Galambus, the treatment plant supervisor now at Alexander Orr. Al, I want to say it was a privilege to have met you at Preston Plant when you came on board. When you got promoted, you came over. It was an honor to be one of the many that provided guidance to you in understanding that particular facility. And it was also an honor in helping you to expand your already many years of water treatment to get you to this point where you are today. Throughout the years, you and I have developed a friendship. I truly appreciate all that. And I truly appreciate the charisma that you provide to everybody, your positive outlook on life, and just you as a person. I look forward to working many more years with you, and congratulations on your 30 years. I'm not much for public speaking. I'm a person that likes to actually be in the background, actually. I really don't try to shine the light on myself. I just try to do my job the best that I can. But I will say that, as I've heard some of my other colleagues say, I've survived. I've survived hints of privatization, furloughs, even my own mistakes that I have made. If I had to be honest with you guys, you know, I love to tell the truth. I come from a line of a family that worked for the county. And my mom was the general coordinator for the county manager, so she retired. And my dad retired from corrections. If I had to be honest, it was my mom that got me the job. Well, when she got me in, she said one thing to me. She said, I can get you in, but I can't keep the job for you. And so from that point, I said, okay, I need to carve my own path. And, you know, I was raised old school. You did something wrong, we got punished. It wasn't always going to corner, it was spankings. And so from that, I got an issue called respect. And I learned to respect people. And I just thank her for the opportunity. I thank all of you who've said so many good things about it. My wife, who has... Those are two. She hears the phones at night. She's heard my stories of things that I've gone through. You know, when I first came on with the county, it wasn't always the best when I first came on. It was a sense of racism when I first came on. And I came out with the one thing that I wanted to do. And I said, you know, I see the racism that was happening inside the county. And I said, I want to show, instead of striking back, what I want to do is show them that what you thought about us were not really what you thought we were. We're just like you. And I want to be able to show you that there's an individual who may not be the same color as you, but has a heart just like you. So let's work together. Some of those individuals are retired, but have contacted me and said, man, I love you. And so I just wanted to say, you know, as I see everybody here who's got their 30 years, we've survived. Your story may not be like mine, but I am so happy to hear all of you have done your accomplishments. I have been scratching on the wall for 30 years. A life sentence is prison is 25. I have been scratching for 30 years. And so now that I've gotten to 30 years, I never thought that I would make it to this point. I'm glad that I've made it. How long I'm going to be here, I have no idea. Every time I try to talk about retirement, people say they don't want me to leave. They tell me that I'm too young. I don't know. But I just look at it this way. You know, depending on whatever I do, no matter what I do, I look at it like this. I'm not a person that goes to chase money. I chase the quality of life. And there's so many people that have retired before me who are no longer here, haven't given their life to a service. I'm glad that I've given what I've given to the county. But what I want to do now is I just want to be able to continue to set a mindset and a tone of respect your elders, respect your authorities, do what's right, have some integrity about what you're doing when you're working for the county. It's not about stealing from them. It's not about trying to get ahead. Do what's right. Let them have, if anything you can do going forward, have a good name. Just have a good name. And all you have to do is just do what's required of it. And if you go beyond that, even better. But that's all I have to say. And thank you guys all. Thank you all. So we're going to call up or acknowledge Victor Yanta for 30 years. Victor, how are you? Good. I'm going to let Mr. Garcia or Andre, who wants it? I'll start it off. I'll pass it off. Good morning. Brandon Garcia, chief of the meter division. Today we're here to honor Victor Yanta, 30 years. 30 years not only with water and sewer, but within the meter division. You know, he's that guy that was spoken about earlier that has worked his way from the bottom, you know, to today where Victor's our supervisor in the West District. Victor started off as a maintenance repairman, worked his way up to become a meter tech, senior meter tech, then a supervisor. You know, he's one of those guys that actually, I've been now, it's going to be a year now as the chief over here, but I've actually known Victor and dealt with Victor for many years. He's that guy that when I was in service or when I was in new business, used to give him a call, Victor, I need this. And regardless, was always there to help you go out of his way. And today, I could tell you, when Victor's on call that night and I give him a call late at night, Victor's that guy that's moving, making things happen, calling me back right away, giving me an update. And your dedication to water and sewer, to the meter division is really appreciated, and I wanted to tell you that. I want to say that it is very special for me to be here today, to be able to honor you for your 30 years of service. God worked in many ways, and me being here, it's an honor for me. It's a pleasure, but it's an honor for me. I heard somebody, and they were speaking about somebody else, and the person says, oh, my work husband couldn't be here. I want to say that Victor is my father at work. So enough about Victor. I'm going to talk about me now. I started working in the county 19 years ago, and I was 18 years old. And this man here taught me everything that he knew, and it was not easy at times. He even hit my head, told me, you're doing it wrong. But I made it, and I hope you're proud of that, and I'm very, very proud of what you have done in your career. You are an amazing human being. You are an amazing trainer. You have been my father at work. And if it was bad when you were teaching me, it's even worse now that you work for me. So I really thank you, and I really appreciate you. Thank you. Really excited. I just want to say thank you. I'm pretty honored and, you know, grateful for all these 30-plus years with the same military division department. And, you know, hopefully a couple more. Let's see. There you go. Let's see. Okay. And thank you. Thank you for everything. Thank you, Brandon. And thank you for, you know, all the coworkers behind me. Okay. And the person that had to wait all that time. It felt like 30 years, didn't it? James Hicks. Congratulations, sir. Mr. Hicks. So you started with us about 30 years ago as a power plant operator, and then you saw the bright side and headed over to be an instrument tech. Eventually you worked your way up to be our lead worker at Central District as our instrument tech. Not quite a supervisor, but you're the one that gets things done. And what's really cool about this is when I got here, the rumor was SCADA doesn't work. You know, it's like we have all this data coming in, and every book you ever read is the best way to operate a plant, the best way to maintain equipment is to look at the data. And so they're like, well, whether it's the gauges or the data or SCADA, it doesn't work. And, like, what do they always say? Like, a chain is only as good as its weakest link. And your team alone is going to be that team that actually brings those links together to make them strong. And now the amount of data we get, how we're using that data to make good decisions, we're not spending a lot of time actually out in the field having to constantly pull samples because we actually have that data that you're making work. And you're that unsung hero that every day when we're looking at SCADA or we're having to get a quick answer or Sandra's having to make a decision or Bo's having to make a decision, it's all because of the work you do countless hours. And so for that, I appreciate it. I appreciate your darling wife for, you know, dedicating him to making sure we work. And you guys are beautiful. Thank you very much. Well, you said it a little different from what I was saying. I always said instrumentation. Nobody knows what that is. Instrumentation specialist. They change it. Yeah, exactly. But it's been a long road, you know, for me. I enjoyed the journey working for Miami-Dade County. I like to dedicate this to my father. He was a Miami-Dade water and sewer operative treatment plant supervisor. That's been some years ago. I'm a third, I'm a James 63rd. He was James 6, Jr. Yeah. In fact, he was the first minority supervisor for Miami-Dade water and sewer back then. So my journey's been good. My wife, she's retired from corrections. So our life has been good, you know. I have four grandkids, you know. So I appreciate working for Miami-Dade County, and I enjoyed the whole time. I'm a nervous person, so. It's plenty to come to speaking. But thank you very much. Appreciate everyone here. It's been a long, good road. Here's to 30 more. That's it, 30 more. 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. 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.