Dispatchers practice teamwork, celebrate ‘their’ week
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KEITH BRYANT kbryant@nwadg.com
Bella Vista’s dispatchers, as well as fire and police administrators, got together April 12 to celebrate National Telecommunicators Week.
“I can’t say enough about our dispatchers,” Fire Chief Steve Sims said. “That’s a tremendous job you all have to do.”
Everyone gathered at the Lake Avalon pavilion while animal control officer Amber Bowman and property clerk Christina Coenen-Lane took calls for the department.
After sharing pizza, the dispatchers got together for a series of team-building exercises. They worked together for a handful of tasks and rotated teams for each exercise.
The rotation, Police Capt. Tim Cook said, was to stress working with anyone, not just favorite co-workers.
“You don’t always get to work with your best friend,” he said.
“But again, this is emergency services.”
Dispatchers worked together to walk in unison on planks, carry a tennis ball suspended by strings and blindly manipulate a length of rope into a square, with rounds of trivia lodged between each challenge.
Dispatcher Shaylan D’andrea said she had a good time, particularly being able to spend time with co-workers on other shifts, whom she doesn’t see as often.
“This was awesome, it’s a perfect day for it,” she said. “It was nice getting to get outside.”