Cedar Hill is a city that professes

to be a city of distinctive char-

acter, Chris Bullard upholds that

vision. This thirty-four year old,

soon to be married firefighter

and paramedic housed in Sta-

tion 2 recently received a thank

y o u

c a r d

f r o m

Donald

Wilcox.

M r .

Wi lcox

is a

military

v e t e r -

an with Multiple Sclerosis living

in a Cedar Hill apartment com-

plex. Being wheel chair bound

had presented a housing issue

that made portions of his apart-

ment bathroom inaccessible.

After several runs by the depart-

ment to assist Mr. Wilcox, Chris

asked his Chief if he could raise

funds to remodel the bathroom

to make it accessible for Mr.

Wilcox. Of course the answer

w a s a f f i r m a t i v e .

Distinctive Character, Distinctive Compassion By: Kim Risner, Manager of Library Services

April 2012

HR Update

HR Contacts

Jessica Wyner Ext. 1050

Jenifer Sweeney Ext. 1068

Angelica Morales Ext. 1052

Tracey Tso Ext. 1053

The fundraising began in earnest

in January. Chris personally raised

$300 and the other contributors

were Home Depot, Casey Jones,

and the Firefighters Association.

Once the funding was in hand,

the team of six firefighters banded

together outside of work hours

and gutted Wilcox bathroom.

Within one week this team provid-

ed results that would

change the quality of

life for Mr. Wilcox. Ac-

cess to all bathroom

features, new tile, wain-

scoting, handicap rail-

ing, and pull/push fau-

cets were installed.

Why did Chris care

enough to reach out o

Mr. Wilcox? Because he

has always been very

close to his grandparents

and he is more aware of the

needs and concerns of a geriatric

person. He said, “I would want

someone to do that for my grand-

parents if I were not around.”

It would appear Chris Bullard

found his calling when after a car

wreck he became interested in

becoming a paramedic. He spent

13 months on crutches and had

seven surgeries. He is now the

person saving lives when humanly

possible and even delivering ba-

bies…16 babies to be exact.

It also seems he has found his

work home in Cedar Hill, a place

that not only profess-

es distinctive char-

acter, but develops

distinctive charac-

ter. Character and

compassion such as

this young fireman’s

is not something that

develops without

nurturing by family

a n d f r i e n d s .

When asked about

his future plans Chris states that he

plans to become a driver and

A Secret Sister Tells Her Story By: Kim Risner, Manager of Library Services

Soft, doe brown eyes and a smile

that makes you think her given name

appears to be well-suited is the first

thing you notice about this woman.

Angelica Morales appears to be a

woman with an aura of an angel.

Angelica’s story speaks for itself. She

has led a life of determination and

spirit. She was the second child of

seven siblings. Her parents moved to

the United States from Mexico when

she was two years old. Her mother

said that even though Angelic was

only two years old, her transition into

this new culture was difficult. Angeli-

ca became more introverted. Angel-

ica speculates that possibly this was

due to the fact that she was in the

midst of both language and social

development at this young age.

As a child she was exposed to Span-

Upcoming Events - Save the Date!

April 9th

Walk Across Texas Team Captain Meeting

April 16th

Walk Across Texas Kickoff - “City Manager’s

Mile” event

May 10th

Employee Cookout (details to follow)

August 24

Annual Employee Health Fair

ish being the sole language her par-

ents spoke at home and English

being spoken in the public venues in

which she was involved. Angelica

freely admits that due to this situa-

tion she believes her comprehension

skills were affected, because neither

language came naturally. She over-

came this challenge through years

of hard work and determination.

Angelica attended school in West

Dallas until her sixth grade year. Her

parents then moved to Oak Cliff,

where she attended school until she

graduated high school. The move to

Oak Cliff was such a blessing be-

cause of the gangs and roughness in

West Dal las at that t ime.

After high school she began attend-

ing Mountain View College and later

retire from the Cedar Hill Fire Depart-

ment. When asked if there are any

other projects like this in his future he

says, “Well, there is this lady whose

husband has Alzheimer…” From an

outsiders viewpoint it looks like anoth-

er opportunity to make a difference,

another opportunity to leave the

legacy of distinctive character and

another story in the making and wait-

ing to be told.

Continued on Page 2 - See “Sister”

Page 2

HR Update

Animal Shelter

Human Resources

Code Enforcement

Upcoming Events

May 5th Adopt-A-Thon - Enjoy balloon animals, pony rides, snow cones, pop

corn, and a bounce house. Come out and take a look at all the

animals...and take home a Champion! During the month of May

every one who adopts a pet will receive a $10.00 Petco gift card.

May 19th Friends of Tri-City Animal Shelter annual “Grrrrrrage” sale

The Tri-Cities Shelter also continues to offer low cost micro chipping. With proof of

current rabies vaccination micro chipping is available for $20. For more information

they please call 972-291-5335.

Code Enforcement is excited

to welcome Michelle Gomez

to their team! Michelle brings

over six years of related ex-

perience from the cities of

Grand Prairie and Irving.

Fire

The Fire Department wel-

comes Phillip Lucky to the

position of Firefighter. Phillip

comes to the City, holding his

Firefighter and EMT certifica-

tions. He has started his em-

ployment with the City by

attending paramedic school.

Driver-Engineer, Jerry Pena (pictured

above) and Battalion Chief, Glen Clark

recently donated their time and exper-

tise to train the next generation of Fire-

fighters in Mexico.

Sister (Continued from page 1) the Universi-

ty of Texas Arlington. This was when UTA still

had a football team. She worked two part-

time jobs as well. One was at a jewelry store

and the other was at Fashion Barn. One of

her co-workers had a roommate that was a

friend with her now husband, Alfonso….and

so the next chapters of Angelica’s life be-

gan when she informed this coworker that

she was rather interested in Alfonso.

Alfonso called Angelica for a date on a

Saturday for that very evening. Angelica

said, “No.” Not because she had plans but

rather because she thought he should have

called sooner to properly ask. She later

learned that he was very upset, because he

thought this had been kind of pre-empted

due to the friends’ involvement. So what

does Angelica do? Well, what any strong,

determined angel would do…she called

Alfonso and told him she was going to a

UTA football game and had an extra ticket

if he would like to go with her. Four months

later the two were married. A few years

later they had their first daughter.

Fast forward to 2012 and the count is not

one, two, but rather 5 women in the house

with this one man. This is a home where hair-

brushes, combs, and eyelash curlers seem to

disappear into thin air. 27 years and 4 daugh-

ters later Angelica says that Alfonso will wear

a crown in heaven. How did they make it to

this point? There were definitely challenges: a

short courtship, 4 children, one income,

homeschooling, and then Angelica returning

to the workplace and completing her Bache-

lor’s degree from UTA. Angelica firmly states

the most important turning point in their life,

the reason they have been able to endure

during challenges is because Alfonso sug-

gested they find a church and begin attend-

ing. Their move towards faith together, has

held them together. The support from a

church family and the couple’s constant

strides toward spiritual well-being make An-

gelica certain that this was the defining mo-

ment of their family’s life together.

As an observer all I can say is Angelica you

emulate your name’s origin, angelic. You are

an angel of faith, determination, and

strength. Oh, by the way, your secret sister

loves your story.

Page 3

April 2012

Parks

Congratulations to Brad Robin-

son (Parks) and his wife, Aman-

da, on the birth of their sweet

baby girl, Makenna! Miss

Makenna was born at 1:04 a.m.

on Friday, March 9th. She was

10 pounds, 7 ounces and 20

inches long.

The Parks Department has re-

cently added several new fac-

es to their team. Seasonal Park

Maintenance Workers are add-

ed this time of year to assist

with the maintenance and up-

keep of landscaping around

the City, If you see a new face

within the Parks Department,

stop and say hello!

Police

Utility Billing

UBill is proud to welcome Gail

May to the position of Custom-

er Service Representative. Gail

has an extensive customer ser-

vice background, with over 6

years experience with the City

of Arlington and 24 years expe-

rience with AT&T. Welcome,

Gail!

The Police Department held its annual awards banquet on March 3, 2012. As chosen by their peers the win-

ners in each category were:

Patricia Lyon

Civilian of the Year Nick Foley

Rookie of the Year Chad Cooley

Officer of the Year

Aaron Leutwyler

Supervisor of the Year

Chief Rhodes also presented the “Chief’s Unit Awards” to Patrol / Community Service Officers, Crime Analyst

Unit, and Citizens On Patrol

Recreation

As summer approaches, Recreation staff is in

hiring mode! Lifeguards, Water Safety Instruc-

tors, Pool Cashiers, and Assistant Pool Man-

agers will be hired to staff the pool this sum-

mer. We are thrilled to have Taylor Wilson on

board as the Pool Manager this summer to

assist in hiring staff, ensuring the premier level

of customer service Cedar Hill is known for is

upheld. Welcome, Taylor!

HR Update

Page 4

Safety Sense

Safety Focus: Heat Stress Safety Tips

Congratulations to all who participated in the Biggest

Loser competition. Collectively, participants lost 207.3

pounds. Overall winners were as follows:

1st Place Female: Stacey Graves (Code) 10.83% Loss

1st Place Male: Chris Tancred (Fire) 13.04% Loss

1st Place Team: Wes Vaughn and Randy Jordan (Fire)

9.52% Combined Loss

2nd Place Team: Donia (Police) and Ricky White

7.73% Combined Loss

3rd Place Team: Max Brown (Parks) and Jacque Valdes (PW)

6.83% Combined Loss

CPR Training - Space Available!

There are still a few spots re-

maining for CPR/AED training on

April 20th. Contact Jenifer

Sweeney in HR to reserve your

spot today!

Wellness Challenge Chatter

April 16th - June 8th

Walk Across Texas is an 8 week

walking program, where teams

of no more than eight (8) City

employees attempt to collec-

tively log at least 830 miles…the

amount of miles it would take

to get across the state of Texas.

Form a team of no more

than 8 employees

Name your team

Select a Team Captain

Team Captains attend

meeting at 2 p.m. on April

9th in Conference Room D

for additional instructions Participate in the “City

Manager’s Mile” Kickoff

Event April 16th

Log mileage April 16 - June

8th for a chance to win

prizes!

• Dress for summer. Wear lightweight, light-colored clothing to

reflect heat and sunlight.

• Put less fuel on your inner fires. Foods, like meat and other pro-

teins that increase metabolic heat pro-

duction also increase water loss.

• Drink plenty of water, non-alcoholic and

decaffeinated fluids. Your body needs

water to keep cool. Drink plenty of fluids

even if you don't feel thirsty. Persons

who have epilepsy or heart, kidney or

liver disease, are on fluid restrictive diets

or have a problem with fluid retention

should consult a physician before in-

creasing their consumption of fluids. Do

not drink alcoholic beverages and limit

caffeinated beverages.

April 1st

Dorothea Baffour, Animal Shelter

April 2nd

Mr. Sims, City Management

Daniel Smith, Fire

Randall Roysdon, Jr., Fire

Juan Martinez, Parks

April 5th

Traci Hemminger, Fire

April 6th

Kevin Cunningham, Fire

Lance Lehrman, Police

April 7th

Wesley Vaughn, Fire

Tencia Taylor, Library

April 8th

Gail May, UBill

Demarcus Iglehart, Police

April 9th

Darrell Young, Signs and Signals

April 10th

Max Brown, Parks

April 15th

Leland Herron, Court

Todd Marsh, Police

April 16th

Amy Haase, Public Works

April 17th

Andrew Rhoden, Police

April 19th

Quang Nguyen, Engineering

Chad Richardson, Fire

April 20th

Charles Christian, Fire

Richard Lambert, Fire

April 22nd

Mr. Porter, City Management

Jeremiah Turman, Fire

David Young, Recreation Center

April 23rd

Allison Thompson, Economic Development

Aubrey Kirk, Court

Sakina Jackson, Court

April 24th

Christopher Williams, Utilities

April 25th

Linda Taylor, Recreation Center

Jose Arreguin, Parks

April 26th

Linda Eadler, Police

April 27th

Adam Campbell

Happy Birthday April Babies!

April 2012

Page 5

Woman on the Run: Belinda Huff

HR Update

through Huntsville State Park.

No one can make you run.

You can easily quit when

you get too tired. Running is

more of a challenge to your-

self, to see how disciplined

you are. Just as Belinda has

done, once you set your

fears aside, you can relish in

the psychological high that

you feel after completing a

run and proving to yourself

that you have the dedica-

tion and the discipline it

takes to do so.

There is no doubt

that she will meet

any goal she sets

because Belinda

takes running per-

sonally. She seeks

purpose in each

run she undertakes

and uses that pur-

pose as the moti-

vation and drive

she needs to finish

each race. Her

inspiration to com-

plete the White

Rock Marathon

was to run in memory of her

coworker’s father who had

recently passed away.

Though she did not publi-

cize who she was run-

ning for that day, or

ask for anything in

return, Belinda’s

motivation and genu-

ine compassion for oth-

ers served as a source of

comfort and strength for a

grieving family that will never

be forgotten and that is ap-

preciated more than she will

ever know. In all she does,

Belinda is an inspiration to

others.

“I am too old.” “I am too

fat.” “I am not a natural run-

ner.” All of these excuses

amplified the fear Belinda

Huff (Planning) faced when

she decided to become a

healthier, happier version of

herself.

In the fall of 2009, just three

short years ago, you would

not have seen Belinda out

running for enjoyment.

Though after seeing her

coworker, Don Gore, train

and complete a triathlon,

Belinda was in-

spired to make a

change. She want-

ed to experience

that same sense of

accomplishment

she saw Don

achieve when he

completed his tri-

athlon. With that in

mind, she set off to

find a physical ac-

tivity that was right

for her. Not being

much of a team

sport player, Belin-

da thought running would

be an activity that she could

learn to love…and she has

done just that! She is now a

proud member of an elite

group of individuals; the 1%

of the population that will

ever complete a full mara-

thon (26.2 miles)! And even

though Belinda achieved

her original fitness goal, she

continues to set new goals

and challenge herself even

more.

Taking the advice and les-

sons she learned through 3

marathon training programs

with Luke’s Locker in Dallas,

Belinda began working to-

ward her current fitness

goal , a half-marathon a

month. To date she’s com-

pleted Houston/Chevron in

January, Cowtown in Febru-

ary and most recently, Rock-

n-Roll Dallas on March 25,

2012.

She began training with

Luke’s in the “13 minute

mile” walk/run group. The

program provided a sense of

support, fellowship, and ca-

maraderie to develop the

skills necessary to achieve

her goals. Since then, she

has graduated to the “9:45 –

10:45 minute mile” group

and to date has completed

16 half marathons and 1 full

marathon. Her first full mara-

thon running experience, the

Dallas White Rock marathon

in December 2011, could not

have been under worst con-

ditions– 40 degrees and rain-

ing, but Belinda endured

and completed the race

that many had given up on

in 5 hours and 37 minutes.

Now, 30 pounds lighter and

physically, as well as emo-

tionally stronger, Belinda

continues to run at least four

times per week, along with

twice weekly strength train-

ing. Her next goal? Com-

plete an Ultra Marathon

(31.07 miles) and the Rocky

Raccoon, a 50k trail run

Running Tips from Belinda

•Try to eat “clean” before a

run, including staying well

hydrated – if you eat a big,

unhealthy meal or don’t

drink enough water, (even

in cool weather condi-

tions), it WILL negatively

affect your performance.

•Don’t wear headphones

when you run – not only is

this a safety precaution, it

also helps you appreciate

the outdoors and all of the

natural sounds.

•Get properly fitted for run-

ning shoes and replace

those shoes faithfully, at

least every 300-500 miles,

to avoid undue stress and

strain, particularly on your

knees.

•Download a running app

for your smart phone or

use a GPS watch to help

keep track of your pace

and time.

•It is hard to do it alone, so

try to find a group or bud-

dy to run with!

Health Sp

otlig

ht

Have news or a story to share? Email it to Jenifer Sweeney in HR for the next HR Update!