Contact Information	Date
For Immediate Release Contact: John Campbell 434.220.9070 or 434.989.0665	March 2, 2010 VDOF-10012

Veteran VDOF Employee Honored by Governor McDonnell

Edinburg resident Richard Thomas was honored Saturday by Gov. Bob McDonnell with this year's Excellence in Virginia's Fire Service Award. Thomas - who has been with the Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF) for more than 39 years - is the Agency's assistant director of resource protection.

The Governor's Fire Service Awards were established in 2002 to formally recognize the men and women who put their lives on the line every day in order to protect the lives and property of others.

State Forester of Virginia Carl E. Garrison III said, “Richard's selection for this honor is truly well deserved. He's dedicated his entire professional life to the service of others through his wildfire suppression and incident management efforts at the local, state and national levels. We're very proud of Richard, and we thank Governor McDonnell for his recognition of Richard's good work.”

For the last 12 years, Richard has been responsible for the operational aspects of VDOF's wildland fire response and statewide emergency efforts. He was also instrumental in the establishment of VDOF's renowned Wildland Fire Academy, which has trained more than 4,000 professional and volunteer firefighters over the past nine years.

VDOF Director of Resource Protection John Miller said, “Richard represents the best of Virginia's Fire Service on a daily basis, and his interaction with Agency personnel and cooperators serves as an example for all to follow.”

True to form, Richard's reputation for shining the spotlight on others was evident after hearing the news of his selection for the Excellence in Virginia's Fire Service Award. “It has been a real pleasure for me to have worked with so many great VDOF, Fire Department and other Agency personnel through the years. This award is as much theirs as it is mine. I'm honored to have been chosen and grateful to all.”

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The Virginia Department of Forestry protects and develops healthy, sustainable forest resources for Virginians.  Headquartered in Charlottesville, the Agency has forestry staff members assigned to every county to provide service to citizens of the Commonwealth.  VDOF is an equal opportunity provider.

With nearly 16 million acres of forestland and more than 144,000 Virginians employed in forestry, forest products and related industries, Virginia forests provide more than $27.5 Billion annually in benefits to the Commonwealth.