Within the Trenches

Within the Trenches Ep 43

Good morning and welcome back! Whitney and I finally got the chance to record episode 43 and this is a must listen and watch! In this episode we sat down with our good friend Matt to talk about ridiculous calls and non-emergency calls on emergency lines. Matt is a local police officer and since we have worked with him before we felt he would be best suited for this episode. We also visit inappropriate 9-1-1 "on hold" songs and share other funny stories. Get ready to be schooled and make sur...

Within the Trenches Ep 42

Good afternoon and welcome to another episode of Within the Trenches. In this episode we visit some calls from our past and I explain a few key stories from episode 40. We start off cracking up and it pretty much sets the tone for the entire episode. We also play a 9-1-1 tape that was featured in the season finale of A&E's Panic 9-1-1. This was also an episode that I was flown out for. I recorded a segment with them where I would be the stand in for the dispatcher in the tape but after a few...

Within the Trenches Ep 41

Good morning and welcome back to another excellent episode of the Within the Trenches podcast. This weeks podcast promotion features Diary of a Mad Dispatcher on Facebook! I will provide the link below and make sure to head over and ‘Like’ them. They are 66,000+ strong and adding more fans every day. The page is tailored to 9-1-1 dispatchers but anyone would be able to get the humor from this page. With that said, this weeks episode features Jessica, a dispatcher with the Maricopa County Sh...

Within the Trenches Ep 40

Good morning! Whitney and I are back with an epic episode of Within the Trenches. In this episode we went back to basics and kept laughing and laughing. This is dispatch humor at its best folks! Yes, the humor is a little dark but people have to understand that in order to work as a 9-1-1 dispatcher you have to have a sense of humor or the job will eat you alive. You will not make it if you let the calls get to you. With that said we also listen to three tapes and tell stories from the trenc...

Within the Trenches Ep 39

Within the Trenches Ep 38

An excellent episode with the return of Whitney!

Within the Trenches Ep 37

Good afternoon folks! I’m back with episode 37 of Within the Trenches. In this episode I started the “Podcast Plug Exchange.” I was approached by Brad Kirsch and I am very happy to be doing this with him and others who want to participate. The Podcast Plug Exchange is meant to help fellow podcasters spread the word on their show. So you would provide me a brief description of your show and an image to be added to the post and your information will be given out during an episode of the show. ...

Within the Trenches Ep 36

Good afternoon folks! This is going to be episode 36 of Within the Trenches. This is where everything will be revealed. Normally I would specify what the highlights of the episode are but for this one I will simply say, “Listen and you will find out.” This is a very important episode! Listen, share and please comment!

Within the Trenches Ep 35

Within the Trenches is back with episode 35! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Jennifer, Director of Loudon County 9-1-1 in Tennessee and she is also the NENA President for the Tennessee Chapter. Jennifer shared her 9-1-1 story beginning with her time as a telecommunicator to her rise up to the position of director. We also touch on how importa...

Within the Trenches Ep 34

Within the Trenches is back with episode 34! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Tony, Deputy Executive Director of the European Emergency Number Association (EENA.) This is a very interesting episode in the sense of differences to the structure of 9-1-1 in Europe over the United States. Tony touches on some of the difficulties Europe is having w...

Within the Trenches Ep 33

Within the Trenches is back with episode 33! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Caryn, who is with Will County 9-1-1 out of Illinois and Robert with the Commission on State Emergency Communications out of Texas. Both represent the National Public Educators Forum or NPEF and we discussed the mission of the organization and the importance of publi...

Within the Trenches Ep 32

Within the Trenches is back with episode 32! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Nathan, President/Founder of the Denise Amber Lee Foundation, April, the Michigan NENA President, and Brian with DU-COMM out of DuPage County Illinois. Now, out of all the sessions that were given at this conference I wanted more than anything to attend this one. The...

Within the Trenches Ep 31

Within the Trenches is back with episode 31! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Elise, the Executive Director of 9-1-1 for Kids. The history of the organization is revealed as well as the main purpose, which is to help reduce 9-1-1 misuse. This was an excellent episode and as you will hear in the beginning and the end of the show the music is di...

Within the Trenches Ep 30

Within the Trenches is back with episode 30! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Natalie, who is retired out of Miami Dade Fire Rescue after 36 years and Sherry, who is with the North Central Texas Counsel of Governments 9-1-1 Program. In this episode we talk about TERT (Telecommunicator Emergency Response Taskforce) and who 9-1-1 calls when they...

Within the Trenches Ep 29

Within the Trenches is back with episode 29! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Kristina and Shelley of Bartlett PD in Tennessee and Rob of Queensland Police Service located in Brisbane, Australia. In this episode we share first time calls, the importance of knowing your location and the stress that comes with working in the 9-1-1 profession. ...

Within the Trenches Ep 28

Within the Trenches is back with episode 28! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with MaryJo of Brooklyn PD and Kelly of Cleveland PD and both are out of Ohio. We shared some laughs as well as some serious stories. Both had great advice for those thinking of getting into the profession. The episode is packed with interesting information and is a must ...

Within the Trenches Ep 27

Within the Trenches is back with episode 27! This episode was recorded at the National NENA Conference and Expo at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Kevin of 9-1-1 Cares/PSTC. We shared stories from the trenches and how Kevin went from working for “AAA” to a 9-1-1 dispatch center. He also went into the history of 9-1-1 cares and how the organization does everything they can to support those behind the mic. This...

Within the Trenches Ep 26

Good morning folks! Within the Trenches is back for episode 26! I had the pleasure of sitting down and speaking with Roger of Cullman County 9-1-1 out of Alabama and Craig who is retired out of Guilford Metro 9-1-1 in North Carolina. This episode is a must listen as both Roger and Craig go through their history with 9-1-1 and how it pulled them in. Craig had emergency services in his blood, so to speak, since his father and uncle’s helped form several volunteer fire departments. Roger on the...

Within the Trenches Ep 25

Good morning everyone! I’m back with another awesome episode of Within the Trenches. In this episode I tried something different from the norm. At the suggestion of two awesome 9-1-1 pro’s, Kristina and Shelley, I grabbed my digital audio recorder and walked the expo hall for spot interviews. I have to admit that it was a lot of fun and I was able to get some good audio. Probably one of the most interesting parts of this episode dealt with THOR Shield that is made by Intrado. Monica, who...

Within the Trenches Ep 24 - National NENA Conference Series

Within the Trenches Ep 23

Hello everyone! Within the Trenches is back with episode 23 and this is a must listen. In this episode I went live on Spreaker and all went well until I forgot that the screen door was locked and my wife was trying to get inside but couldn’t. I had to go off the air for a short moment but everything came out great either way. This episode also included some highlights of the NENA conference last week in Lansing and the announcement of our involvement in the National NENA conference that wil...

Within the Trenches Ep 22

Good evening everyone and welcome to episode 22 of Within the Trenches. This is the last episode of the NENA conference series that were recorded in Lansing, Michigan at the Lexington Hotel. The entire week was great and I definitely learned a lot. I also gave my own presentation on how I got into the 9-1-1 profession and how I created Within the Trenches. Despite my nerves I was able to give an excellent presentation and I am looking forward to the next time I speak at a conference. In t...

Within the Trenches Ep 21

Good afternoon everyone! I am back again with another great episode from this weeks NENA conference in Lansing, Michigan. In this episode Mike of St. Joseph County Fire Dispatch in South Bend, Indiana, joined me along with Ron, Executive Director of Kent County Dispatch Authority and Nancy, Dispatch Operations Manager of St. Joseph County in Indiana. Episode 21 is jammed packed with useful information and a must listen. We touch on several dispatch stories as well as a mention of the Denise...

Within the Trenches Ep 20

Good morning and happy Friday! This has been an amazing week for me. I had the chance to attend the 2013 NENA conference in Lansing, Michigan for 9-1-1 professionals. I attended some excellent classes and met some great people doing great things. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Dee Ann, assistant director of Tuscola county 9-1-1, an ENP and one of the founding board members of the 911 Wellness Foundation. Also sitting with us for this episode was Jim Marshall with the 91...

Within the Trenches Ep 19

Good afternoon everyone! I hope you are having an excellent day. I am currently in Lansing, Michigan for the 2013 NENA conference. This episode is the first of a series that will be recorded here. I have been attending classes, meeting new people and for this episode I had the pleasure of speaking to Dee Ann, the assistant director of Tuscola County Central Dispatch. We had an excellent conversation and this is one that you can't afford to miss! As always you can email the show at thejcast@...

Within the Trenches Ep 18

Hello everyone! Whitney and I are back with an epic episode 18 of Within the Trenches. It has been about a month or so since Whit and I were together for an episode but we are back to hook you up with another excellent show. This week both Whitney and I have been battling some health issues but my minor cold and Whit's ear were unable to hold us back. On this episode we had the pleasure of interviewing none other than the very popular KMK of Diary of a Mad Dispatcher. KMK shared some awesom...

Within the Trenches Ep 17

Hello everyone, I am back this week for episode 17 of Within the Trenches. This is the last of a series of episodes that were recorded at the Mini-C conference in Boca Raton Florida. In this episode I sat down with four of Palm Beach State College 9-1-1 Dispatch Academy's finest. The conversation I had with Lisa, Myrnett, Wayne and Kimberly was excellent and refreshing. Their insight and experience going through the academy brought me back to when I first started. My beginning wasn't as ela...

Within the Trenches Ep 16

Good evening folks! I am back again with a new episode of Within the Trenches. This episode is a continuation of the series of episodes that I recorded this past week at the Mini-C conference in Boca Raton Florida. In this episode I had the privilege of speaking with Cheryl who works with Palm Beach County 9-1-1 Management and is a part-time 9-1-1 dispatcher. Cheryl was great to talk to and she finished off the interview with an excellent message for the public. It's something that everyone...

Within the Trenches Ep 15

Good afternoon! This episode of Within the Trenches features Sabrina of West Palm Beach Dispatch Operations. We had an excellent conversation before recording and it was nice because we were able to get to know each other better. After only a few minutes of talking to her I felt as though we knew each other all our lives. This is a must listen episode that everyone can learn from. Make sure to check it out, share and as always, you can email the show at [email protected].     ...

Within the Trenches Ep 14

Good evening! Last week was rather busy with my root canal, 22 hour drive to Florida and graduation. I'm very happy to say that my family and I made it through everything with no problems, but last weeks episode had to be postponed. I'm still on vacation in Florida and just yesterday I had the privilege of attending the 4th Annual Mini-C conference in Boca Raton. I was initially invited by Tom of The Cool Kids of 9-1-1. He and I had been talking about promoting each others work and he menti...

Within the Trenches Ep 13

Hello everyone! Whitney and I are back again this week with episode 13 of Within the Trenches. A few episodes back we spoke with Cheryl of Yakima, Washington and she was not only a dispatcher but she is part of her centers critical incident stress management (CISM) team. It was an interesting and informative show and since it went so well, we wanted to bring this week’s guest on to add to the topic of CISM. This week we spoke with Matt, operations manager of the communications center in Ken...

Within the Trenches Ep 12

Good evening everyone! Whitney and I are back with episode 12 of Within the Trenches. We postponed our interview for this week because of some issues I was having with an infected tooth and some minor oral surgery but we pulled through. This weeks episode is a bit longer than the last few but it's definitely worth it. I can tell you that it's amazing and you are really going to dig it! In this episode we share four different 9-1-1 tapes involving the wonders of bees, handcuffs, shrimp fried...

Within the Trenches Ep 11

Good afternoon everyone! Whitney and I are back with episode 11 of Within the Trenches. This week we spoke with Cheryl, a dispatcher and Critical Incident Stress Management, (CISM) team member with SunComm in Yakima, WA. This was an interesting episode because we were battling with the Internet, our friend and foe. We dealt with some issues over Skype and the audio was cutting in and out but after some good editing, you can't even tell that anything messed up. Despite the technical difficul...

Within the Trenches Ep 10

Good morning everyone I hope you are having an excellent Saturday. This past Wednesday Whitney and I sat down with two different dispatchers to record episodes 10 and 11. This way we can post one this week and post the next this coming Wednesday. It gives us some time to contact more people and come up with new things to do on the show. We are currently working on topic driven episodes with Whitney and I, answering listener questions and we were recently given the green light from Dispatch ...

Within the Trenches Episode 9

Good morning! I hope you are ready for a few stories from America’s hat. This week on Within the Trenches, Bobbi of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) joined us for episode 9 over Skype. Her stories and training were not only interesting but if I had started out my dispatching career in her center I might have gone insane. I mean, think about it, “911 where is your emergency?” “I have a bear in my yard!” Or “An avalanche just slammed down in the area!” Yeah…that would have been pr...

Within the Trenches Episode 8

Hello everyone! Whitney and I are back with episode 8 for our back to back episodes week of Within the Trenches. In this episode we chat with Dan, Director of Chilton County E9-1-1 in Alabama. Our topic of discussion takes us back to April 27 2011 when a swarm of tornadoes destroyed the surrounding area. Dan has a very extensive background in emergency services so it was very interesting to get his feedback and explanation on certain topics. We even touched on how an area in Montana and the ...

Within the Trenches Episode 7

Good evening folks! Whitney and I are back again with 1 of 2 new episodes of Within the Trenches. This week we Skype’d with Joshua of West Bloomfield Township PD in Michigan. The topic of this episode is one of great importance. No dispatcher or anyone out in the field ever wants to hear, “Shots fired. Officer down,” but it’s something that some of us have heard throughout our years of duty. If you’ve ever dealt with this then you know that a debriefing or speaking to your peers will help mo...

Within the Trenches Episode 6

Good evening folks! Whitney and I are back with episode 6 of Within the Trenches. This week was a little different for us in the sense that we were pretty slap happy up until the beginning of the show. Crystal and Jen, of Ottawa County Central Dispatch Authority, joined us to tell their story and experience in 9-1-1. All four of us work the night shift and for Whitney and I, we worked from 4:30 p.m. – 4:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. – 5:00 a.m. As for Crystal and Jen, they both worked from 7:00 p.m....

Within the Trenches Episode 5

Good evening folks! It’s about 00:39hrs and I am finally getting the chance to post episode 5. This episode was not only fun but it was extra special. Announcements were made, thank you’s were given and there was a special guest. First off this is an open invitation for any emergency services dispatcher in any state or country that would like to take part in this show. On behalf of my new co-host Whitney and I, we would love for you to be a guest. This show is all about you and your story. I...

Within the Trenches Episode 4

Good evening folks! Within the Trenches is back with episode 4 and boy have we picked up some steam since the beginning. This week I had the chance to sit down with Barry County, an Emergency Medical Dispatcher (PSAP) & AeroMedical Service Controller from Dublin, Ireland. Yes, you read that right. Barry had some excellent stories that I’m sure you will enjoy and we talked about how I was confused in the beginning with his name. I originally received a message from him on his interest in the ...

Within the Trenches Episode 3

Good afternoon folks! I hope everyone is having a great day. This week on Within the Trenches I sat down with Trista of Allegan County Central Dispatch to tell her story. We talked about how she got into the profession of emergency services as well as how callers can screw up her name. We touched on the many questions we ask and how the night shift of 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. can bring horror over the radio. “SHOTS FIRED” is something we never want to hear yelled over the radio but it comes with the...

Within the Trenches EP2

Good afternoon everyone! The past couple days have been a whirlwind. I mean this in the greatest way possible too! Within the Trenches was the basis of my Kickstarter project and yesterday, with 38 hours to spare on the campaign, the project was fully funded. That’s right folks, the project was funded and has surpassed its goal. It happened almost overnight and I can’t tell you how happy I am. Support came out of the woodwork and once it was said and done I jumped for joy, literally. I threw...

Within the Trenches EP1

Good evening folks! I am very happy to announce that the first episode of Within the Trenches went live today. My good friend Whitney joined me and I have to say that it went great. For those who don’t know what Within the Trenches is, this is a podcast version of a segment with the same name on Jabber Log that revolves around 9-1-1 dispatch. I started writing about my experience about a year ago and it was meant to be interesting and educational for the readers, as well as therapeutic for m...