01-25-21 Regular Meeting of the La Porte City Council

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Employee of the Year for 2020 Johnny Morales —Assistant Emergency Management Coordinator Johnny Morales has served the La Porte community as the Assistant Emergency Management Coordinator since August 2019. In that role, Johnny's responsibilities have included ensuring that the City's emergency plans are maintained and that training exercises are conducted to test those plans. 2020 was a busy year for Emergency Management. In addition to his regular duties, Johnny took on management of the Emergency Management team's social media accounts and created a page on the City's website dedicated to informing the community about COVID-19 issues. Johnny has also taken the lead on managing departmental requests for COVID-19 related resources like masks and sanitizing supplies. Johnny was critical in the City's preparation and responses to Hurricane Laura and Tropical Storm Beta during a very active tropical weather season. Recently he has played a key role in administering the City's grant programs under the CARES Act, which has positively impacted La Porte businesses and residents. Johnny is a great representative of the La Porte community. He graduated from La Porte High School before earning a Bachelor's in Public Relations and a Master's degree in Homeland Security. He has been a member of the La Porte Volunteer Fire Department since 2018. Johnny always puts the residents of La Porte at the top of his priority list, whether that's delivering masks to seniors, connecting residents with local resources, or just taking some time to talk to concerned members of the community. On Saturdays in August and September, Johnny volunteered at drive -through food distribution events hosted by the Houston Food Bank and Wells Fargo. Johnny's positive attitude is well known among employees and apparent to everyone he encounters. Especially in stressful times, his passion to help others is motivating and encouraging. Johnny makes the work easier because of his skill set and work ethic, and more enjoyable because he always has a good attitude. The entire La Porte community is fortunate to have Johnny on the City's team. Please join me in thanking Johnny for his great work and congratulating him on being selected as the 2020 Employee of the Year.