East Lake Fire Commission: Thank You For Considering Me

I received a telephone call this morning from the East Lake Fire Commission informing me that I was not one of the five applicants that was selected to be interviewed at their July 10 meeting to fill the seat on the Commission that will be vacated by Flo Galloway.

While I'm very disappointed, I also want to say thank you for the opportunity to apply for such a prestigious honor.

As part of the application process, the Commissioners requested that an essay be submitted that explained "WHY" each person felt as though they were qualified to apply for the position.

I want to thank my staff for putting the following piece together for me.

What Makes Tom McQueen Qualified To Serve On The East Lake Fire Commission?

            There are three fundamental reasons why Tom McQueen is qualified to fill the current vacancy on the East Lake Fire Commission:

 1. CHARACTER

Ø  During his career from youth to adulthood, he was personally invited by the President of the United States to participate in the White Conference on Youth; he also facilitated programs for Governor Nelson Rockefeller and Governor Bob Graham.

Ø  When abortion violence broke out in Pensacola, Florida, then Mayor John Fogg called upon Tom to work with city leaders to develop a set of core values and a process for implementing them to help the city heal.

Ø  Tom McQueen is a 4-time award-winning author for his book, Letters to Ethan: A Grandfather’s Legacy of Life & Love (Seraphina Press, 2010) and for the recent book be co-authored with Richard R. Dimmitt entitled, Servant Hearts: The Legacy of the Dimmitt Automotive Group (Xulon Press, 2012). He has published other books and his articles that have appeared in national publications.

Ø  Tom is represented by CMGbooking.com and is a frequent speaker to church groups and businesses both locally and nationally.

Ø  Tom has been married once for 34 years to his wife, Dottie, and is a member of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in New Port Richey where he has also presented programs for the parish staff and members.

2. COMPETENCE

Ø  Between 1996 and 2011, Tom collaborated with a team of over 200 process improvement facilitators to develop continuous improvement programs for automobile dealerships nationwide. In 2010 and 2011, Tom led a team of 14 business consultants throughout the southeastern United States to achieve greater penetration of program efforts in over 350 dealerships. During his work, Tom was awarded the “Jackie Robinson Award” from Crest Cadillac in Venice, Florida, and the “True Leadership Award” from Proctor Holdings in Tallahassee, Florida.

Ø  In 2011, Tom worked with the corporate training staff of the Penske Automotive Group in Detroit to design the curriculum for a leadership-training program that was used to train their managers at dealerships nationwide.

Ø  In 2002 and 2003, Tom collaborated with nine hospitals that comprised the BayCare Health organization to implement a coaching program for their 600+ managers.  That initiative resulted in the publication of “BayCare Coaching: Helping Our Team Members Learn, Grow, & Develop.”

Ø  In March of 2001 the St. Petersburg Times reported that Tom McQueen had been hired as an outside consultant for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays to address customer service related issues that had the team ranked last in guest satisfaction among all major league baseball teams. Within two short years, the Rays improved to #3 among all professional baseball teams.

Ø  In 1993, with the public confidence rating of Gulf Power Company in Pensacola at an all-time low, executive leadership invited Tom to design and deliver a Core Ethics & Compliance program for all 1,600 employees throughout the panhandle. Within three years, Gulf Power’s public confidence ranking soared to over 90%.

3. COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY

Ø  Tom coached baseball from T-Ball through Seniors in the Palm Harbor Little League as his son was growing up. He also volunteered as the Assistant Varsity baseball coach for Lakeside Christian School in Clearwater for four years.

Ø  On a volunteer basis, Tom presents his “Faith, Family, & Miracles” program to churches of every denomination across the country.

Ø  As President of the not-for-profit American Family Foundation and also LegacyNationUSA, Tom’s mission is to keep parents and grandparents actively engaged in the lives of their grandchildren while reaching out and assisting families that need help.

Ø  Tom McQueen is a graduate of the Leadership Pinellas program.

Ø  In his capacity as the Brand Development Executive for the Dimmitt Automotive Group, Tom collaborated with Peter Dimmitt to create the Community Values Day program whereby employees donate one day of their time each year to assist such organizations as the Homeless Emergency Project and Habitat for Humanity.

On a personal note, Tom visited the Open House at Station 57 this spring with his wife and grandson.

While they were there, they viewed the memorial to Sean Duff. Sean was the best man at Joe McQueen’s wedding, his partner at SunStar, as well as a coach and a mentor to Joe, in addition to being a friend of the family. Joe is Tom’s son and a Lieutenant in the Polk County Fire Department.

Tom views an opportunity to serve on the East Lake Fire Commission as a way to honor Sean for what he did for his son, for the fire service, and for the community.

Once again, thank you to the Commissioners for reviewing my application and I wish all the best to Mrs. Galloway's replacement as the Commission continues to serve the wonderful residents of our East Lake Community.