Photos: Handshake For a Hero
The Enterprise — Elizabeth Floyd Mair
Bird’s-eye view: Police and other first responders gather in the lobby of the Guilderland Town Hall before the ceremony honoring first responders to a house fire on Ayre Drive in McKownville.
The Enterprise — Elizabeth Floyd Mair
Not forgotten: Here Barber greets Senior Telecommunicator Gina Spadaro. Both she and Telecommunicator Jordyn Austin received plaques for, as Barber said at the ceremony, “their vital role in handling the enormous amount of radio traffic taking place, and with complete accuracy.” The dispatchers coordinated first responders from 15 different agencies that morning. One additional individual award was also given: to Guilderland Emergency Medical Service Paramedic Supervisor Matthew Phelps.
The Enterprise — Elizabeth Floyd Mair
First on the scene: First Lieutenant Cameron Becker, 22, of the North Bethlehem Fire Department, was one of two firefighters singled out for special recognition. Becker had the chief’s vehicle that weekend and sped directly to the scene, where he worked together with McKownville Fire Department Assistant Chief Michael Costabile, before any fire crews arrived, to secure the children who were found outside the residence and to pull three others from the building.
The Enterprise — Elizabeth Floyd Mair
Saving lives together: First Sergeant Michael Minette of the Guilderland Police holds the plaque he received, as Chief Carol Lawlor looks on. Also on the scene in the first few minutes, Minette was one of three Guilderland police officers given special recognition. He and Officer Kyle McCormack worked together with firefighters Becker and Costabile to pull the home’s residents out through a window. A third officer, Giuliana Iannuzzi, was honored as well: she secured the children and kept them calm until they could be taken to the hospital.