Ventura County Public Works Agency (VCPWA) awarded longtime personnel, Sean Hanley, Kelly Hahs and Tony Sheppard as the 2020 Employees of the Year. Each year, peers recognize fellow employees for their skills and outstanding job performance in the respective categories of operations & maintenance, office, and management.
Hanley, who currently serves as a Water Distribution Supervisor in VCPWA Water & Sanitation, has been with VCPWA for over 12 years. His responsibilities entail taking care of all the distribution infrastructure, which includes approximately 262 miles of main line, 15,000 service lines, 2,500 fire hydrants and 32 storage reservoirs.
He has been working for the last year and a half on transitioning from paper maps and work orders to a web and cloud based GIS mapping and asset management software.
“I am extremely honored to receive this recognition from the VCPWA Directors, said Hanley. “All of the candidates do such great work so there is a lot of competition, and I was excited to be chosen out of such an elite group.”
A part of her main role as Water Resource Specialist IV, Hahs coordinates the water quality monitoring activities to meet permit requirements for the Ventura Countywide Municipal Stormwater Permit. This includes monitoring urban runoff in wet and dry weather as well as participating in/organizing special studies such as biological assessments.
In addition, Hahs collects surface water samples and data from across the County, reviews laboratory data, conducts data management and analysis, and writes plans and reports on the results.
“It feels wonderful to work with an amazing group, and it means a lot to know they think of me as highly as I think of them,” said Hahs. “I’m proud to be part of a team that values water quality and works hard to protect it.”
As the Public Works Agency IT Manager in VCPWA Central Services, Sheppard, along with his staff, provide enterprise technology support to all five departments. This includes support to over 400 employees and computers and 250 cellular devices. In addition, Sheppard is responsible for supporting and developing agency applications and websites, remote monitoring devices and sensors, citizen facing resources and continual process improvements.
“Working at VCPWA is unlike anything I have ever done before, I am truly honored and humbled to be recognized by my peers and senior leadership of our Agency,” said Sheppard. “Five different departments often have very different technology requirements and providing solutions for those business needs through the appropriate use of technology is a point of pride and critical to success in this job, so this recognition extends to my team.”
Nominees also recognized included: Felipe Gonzalez, Jose Hernandez, Matt Maechler (Roads & Transportation), Joe Valdivia, David Goldstein, Jean Fontayne (Water & Sanitation) CJ Farrar (Central Services) and Bruce Rindahl (Watershed Protection).
“VCPWA is lucky to have so many talented, hardworking individuals on our team,” said Ventura County Public Works Agency Director, Jeff Pratt. “Our award recipients and nominees are vital leaders in support of our goal to innovate and find a better way every day.”
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