TEHA Beacon Quarterly Newsletter

Vol. 15, No. 1 Winter 2009 - Archive

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In This Issue

Message from the President

Greetings TEHA!

I know "The Only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible"
--Willy Acuna

We began our year on a note of sorrow with the parting of one of our precious members, Willy Acuna. His dedication and enthusiasm to our profession and organization was unwearied. It was an honor for TEHA to have had him as a member and his positive presence will be missed for years to come.
Willy, we miss you!

On a greener note, we are working on ways as an environmental health association to "Get Green!"

TEHA is striving for a more "electronic" way of communication and we are asking for your patience as we work out the issues in pushing toward the futuristic goal of paperless communication. We realize that many of you have not been receiving mailings and this plan of action should keep you more informed as to the happenings of our organization.

In 2009, we welcome the latest member of our governing council, Ruth Hendy. Ruth joins us as our Parliamentarian and we welcome her professionalism. Our recent quarterly meeting in January resulted in an adoption of a resolutions policy that Dan Dennison worked diligently to complete. Betty Richardson is working with many of our other council members to bring to you the best conference ever in October. I want to personally thank Steve and Kandy Berry for their continued hard work as our Secretary/Treasurer team and all the council members for dedicating their time and efforts that allows TEHA to be the biggest and best environmental health association in the nation!!!
In closing...a reminder that we have launched our Public Service Announcements on several radio stations so keep an ear out for them! In addition to striving to meet the educational needs of our members, TEHA also is committed to making the public more aware of the importance of our jobs to our communities. If you have any ideas, let us hear from you!!!

Kelly Kirkpatrick-Stockburger, RS
TEHA President

Message from Sandra Long-NEHA Region V VP
Winter 2009 Report

In October, I attended the Oklahoma Society of Environmental Health Professionals Annual Education Conference in Oklahoma City. The conference provided a variety of programs and was well attended.

December 2-5, 2008, I attended orientation at the NEHA office in Denver, CO. The experience was like no other! Let me just say NEHA is so much more than you may know. There is some dynamic work being carried out by the organization. I will do my best to keep you updated on these activities. I had the opportunity to meet each of the staff members and learn of the jobs they perform. Contact information and photos of each staff member can be found on the NEHA website.
NEHA’s 73rd AEC and Exhibition is June 21-24 in Atlanta, Georgia, at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. Don’t miss this educational opportunity in 2009!

NEHA is accepting applications for the NEHA Excellence in Sustainability Award. The award recognizes organizations, businesses, associations, and individuals who are solving environmental challenges by using innovative and environmentally sustainable practices. The deadline to submit is April 17, 2009. For more information, please contact Denise Devotta, Education Coordinator, at ddevotta@neha.org or phone 303.756.9090, ext. 313.

NEHA e-learning has just added 18 new courses from the presentations made at the 2008 AEC in Tucson, AZ. The following tracks were taped: food safety, general environmental health, sustainability, and vector control. Remember, NEHA members get free continuing education credits for completing the courses and quizzes that can be used toward your credential requirements. Visit NEHA e-learning for information on these and all the NEHA e-learning opportunities.

Continuing education courses completed through NEHA e-learning will be automatically added to your account - no additional paperwork or submission forms to fill out!

NEHA is pleased to unveil its NEW online store. The new, user-friendly store has been re-organized, allowing you to find the books you need in a faster and smarter fashion. Book covers, expanded descriptions, and tables of contents are being made available to help you determine if a book fits your needs. Other tools, such as an easy-to-use search feature, bestsellers, featured items, and what’s new information have been added as well.

Sandra Long
NEHA Region V VP

Chapter Reports

Central Texas
The Winter Workshop was held on December 11, 2008, in San Marcos, Texas. It was a great conference and a great turnout with 69 TEHA members attending. THANK YOU to all the members who donated canned food items to the San Marcos Food Bank for the holiday season. One of our General Council Members, Marcel Elizondo, attended the December City of San Marcos Council Meeting to present Mark Brinkley with the CTEHA Meritorious Award.

Our new t-shirts are also available to all TEHA members for $15.00. We are gearing up for our Annual Conference for May 21-22, 2009, in San Marcos and look forward to a great 2009.

Amanda Wilson, RS - Chapter President

East Texas
The 2008 Annual Educational Conference in Austin was a great success with excellent speakers, good relationship building, and fun! 2009 promises to be a year for new beginnings!! TEHA has recently launched a "public service announcement" about Environmental Health folks like you and me! Keep your ears attuned for that spot on your radio. It is about alerting the public to the "invisible profession" that we really DO everyday ... As budget belts tighten and move toward lean, "go green ... to the local meetings just down the road"!!

This spring, TEHA educational opportunities in East Texas will include a Local Rabies Control Authority (LRCA) course on March 19 in Tyler. Along with that, plans are developing for a Swimming Pool Workshop in Tyler in late March/April and an Animal Cruelty Workshop in Longview later this year.

Talk to your coworkers, administrators and friends about your profession and TEHA. Encourage them to join and take advantage of the wide range of educational and networking opportunities through TEHA! Contact me with ideas, suggestions and where you would like to help. . . I hope to see you at one of these meetings!

Jim Longacre, R.S. - Chapter President

Gulf Coast
The Gulf Coast Chapter held a Governing Council meeting on January 14 and made plans to hold three chapter educational conferences this year. Meeting dates and locations are tentatively planned for April 1 in Baytown, August 12 in Humble, and November 18 at a location to be announced.

Each meeting will give attendees the opportunity to earn up to six continuing education credits. Planned upcoming topics are “Mobile Food Establishment Fire Safety,” “Organic Food Standards,” “Pest Control in Food Establishments,” “General Sanitation,” “Signs to Look for involving Human Trafficking,” “Environmental Lead Hazards,” “Food Borne Investigations Involving Foreign Visitors,” “City of Houston’s Feral Feline Relocation Program,” “Landfills and Their Effects on the Environment,” “Legislative Update on Swimming Pool Regulations,” “Emergency Management – Disaster Lessons Learned,” and more to be announced.

I hope everyone can make it to the meetings and let’s make 2009 a year to remember.

Russell O’Brien, RS - Chapter President

North Texas
The North Texas Chapter tragically lost a dear friend on December 3, 2008 - newly elected chapter president, Willy Acuna, City of Plano EHS. Willy's constant positive attitude and innovative ideas were among the many reasons our members chose to have Willy proudly lead NT-TEHA in 2009.

Unfortunately, his quick and sudden passing didn't allow him the opportunity to expand his ideas and lead NT-TEHA into the new year. We do know that he was EXTREMELY proud of his family, his career, and his role in TEHA. Willy will be greatly missed!

The North Texas Chapter held its Annual Holiday Meeting at the Fort Worth Zoo on December 4, 2008. Wow pretty much sums it up! This was our largest turnout of members to date! More than 150 people in attendance! Topics of discussion included The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool Safety Act, a motivational speaker on Overcoming the Urgently Unimportant, and the BIG HIT was the conservation presentation conducted by the Ft. Worth Zoo, which included having live animals among the crowd!

Susan Yates - Chapter President

Panhandle/West Texas
I am very excited to be your chapter president. I am putting together a chapter meeting at the end of February in Lubbock. The agenda is being finalized so please watch for the details.

I want to begin communicating with our chapter members via e-mail instead of using regular mail. This will allow for information to get to the members faster and it will help reduce our postage costs.

If your e-mail has changed, or you did not include it on your registration, please contact me at: chargrave@unitedtexas.com
so I can update it.

Cheryn Hargrave, RS
Chapter President

South Texas
On behalf of the South Texas Chapter, we would like to thank everyone who attended the South Texas Annual Conference in December in South Padre Island. Participation decreased from last year, but it was still a great success! Our STC membership continues to increase every year, and we would like to remind everyone to please spread the word about our wonderful organization.

STC also sponsored an Officer Safety with Bite Stick & Pepper Spray class on January 28, 2009, that offered (4) four CEUs for Animal Control Officers and (4) four TCLEOSE for only $125. Then, on January 29 – 30, 2009, we will also offered a course on Animal Cruelty Investigator that is good for (12) twelve CEUs for Animal Control Officers and (12) twelve TCLEOSE for $250 in South Padre Island at the beautiful La Quinta Resort. We are also in the final stages of sponsoring an OSSF class in March and a Vector class in April.
Make it a Great 2009!

J. Victor Baldovinos, CEO
Chapter President

Information and Notices
Legislative Update - Vector Control Licenses	TEHA has been active in the attempt to move vector control licensure from DSHS to the Texas Department of Agriculture. We have been working closely with the office of (R) Joe Driver, State Representative from Garland. Representative Driver anticipated filing a bill early in the legislative session to start this process. As soon as the bill is filed and assigned a number, we will let you know so you can contact your state legislators in support of the bill. There may be some additional questions that must be answered as to the management of the program and these questions can be addressed at the appropriate time. TEHA will recommend fees be exempted for governmental entities involved in pest control activities to protect public health. Representative Driver is very optimistic about the chances of success with this proposed bill. We will keep you up-to-date on any new developments with this proposed bill.
Greener Transition Begins in 2009	As you read in President Kirkpatrick-Stockburger's message, TEHA is looking at ways to become a "green" organization. The Governing Council has decided it is time for your professional environmental association to look at its options for increasing communications through electronic media. This will be a gradual process throughout this year. We will keep you informed with updates in future editions of the Beacon and TEHA e-news as we make this transition.
Central Texas Chapter T-shirts	Available at the October TEHA Educational Conference: "Keeping Texas Clean since 1956" $15 benefits the Central Texas Chapter Scholarship Fund
In Memoriam Willy Acuna	Members of the TEHA Environmental Association mourn the passing of Willy Acuna on December 3, 2008. He was the newly elected president of our North Texas Chapter and employed by the City of Plano. He had just received the department's "Employee of the Year Award." Willy was a veteran member of several organizations, including NEHA and the American Public Health Association. He has left behind his wife Chrisy and two children, along with a host of family and friends with many co-workers among them. A memorial service was held on December 7, 2008, in McKinney.

The Beacon
Volume 15, Number 1
Winter, 2009

Quarterly Newsletter of
Texas Environmental Health Association
PO Box 860099
Plano, TX 75086-0099
Phone 972-461-9644
Fax 972-429-9066

Web-site: www.myteha.org
Email: steve.berry@myteha.org

The Texas Environmental Health Association has not tested any of the products or services advertised or referred to in this publication, nor has it verified any of the statements made in any of the advertisements or articles. Opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily the official opinion of the Texas Environmental Health Association.

The Beacon: Published quarterly as the official publication of the Texas Environmental Health Association. This publication is intended to keep all interested parties informed on matters as they relate to environmental health, especially in Texas.

Editorial and Advertisements: Address all correspondence regarding technical editorial matters or purchase of advertisements to:

Steve Berry, REHS, RS, DAAS
Editor, The Beacon

Association Business: Address all correspondence concerning the Texas Environmental Health Association to:

Steve Berry, REHS, RS, DAAS
Executive Secretary - Treasurer