Hamilton County is blessed with numerous local government servants who have served taxpayers with distinction. Today I would like to recognize one such individual: Tony Reavley.
Tony first came to my attention during the administration of Don Allen, Hamilton County's emergency manager, when I first moved here from North Carolina in the early 1990s. Tony and Joel Vinsant served as Don's right and left hands during much of his administration, coordinating the construction of the Hamilton County Emergency Operations Center, 911 Center, training, disaster mitigation and response and federal grant administration.
Unfortunately, Joel tragically passed away, the EOC was named after him in his honor, and Tony was appointed chief of the department when Don was promoted to the office of Human Services administrator for Hamilton County.
Tony had a distinguished three decade long career with Hamilton County, serving as the top Emergency Management Agency official for seven years, serving on the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, and numerous other regional and local boards and commities.
I first came to meet Tony when he, as director of Training at Hamilton County Emergency Management, taught a class in Disaster Communications to the Chattanooga Amateur Radio Club, of which I was a member and for a short time, officer.
Tony (and Don also) even studied and passed the Federal Communications Commission exam to become licensed by that agency. I remember how Don (who was also a pilot) would send video to the EOC and public of the Winter Storm snowfall that paralyzed Chattanooga in 1993 using Amateur Television frequencies.
I recall that Tony had an "open door policy" during his seven year tenure as director of Emergency Management. He possessed Active Listening Skills, Problem Resolution Skills, and Customer Service Skills, and members of our community who had disaster related issues had only to show up or call him and he'd help resolve the problem. No appointment necessary, no receptionist or secretary to screen visitors. The need for his expertise was there, and he took the time to listen and respond.
After his retirement from Hamilton County, Tony helped Blue Cross Blue Shield Headquarters resolve issues they faced, and when that mission was accomplished, Rhea County's Emergency Manager encountered health issues, so Tony stepped in to take over that leadership role temporarily.
Not one to retire to the rocking chair on his front porch, Tony then took on responsibility for helping Sheriff Jim Hammond with the task of ensuring the maintenance issues at the Silverdale Corrections Campus were remediated so as not to jeopardize compliance with jail accreditation standards.
In between his hard work on these jobs, Tony helped his small community in northern Hamilton County, Sale Creek by volunteering his time with their fire department. He has also contributed countless hours of service to various civic and charitable events including races and marathons raising funds for non-profit organizations.
Tony has a pattern and practice of always being professional and polite to those he works with and the public he serves. No matter how busy he is, he takes the time to look visitors in the eye and help however he can. He is a straight shooter -- a genuine servant of the public, albeit modest and unassuming.
Tony is the epitome of "best practices" -- he's always professional, ethical, and competent. He performs each assignment with enthusiasm and dignity.
He has a pattern and practice of coordinating people by employing his leadership skills toward the goals necessary to accomplish the task at hand, whether it is a tornado which devastated hundreds of homes, or coordinating installation of monitoring systems to ensure the safety of inmates and jailhouse staff alike.
When the media publicizes issues and problems in our public facilities and services, it is reassuring to know that Sheriff Hammond and County Mayor Jim Coppinger and former Human Resources Director Don Allen recognized in Tony Reavley his dedication, leadership skills, resourcefulness, and mastery of diplomacy -- harnessing disparate folks to accomplish goals synergistically.
Mark Regan
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One additional thing that was not mentioned is that for the past nine years Tony Reavley has also been known by many student athletes as Coach Reavley due to his work as a volunteer assistant football coach for Sale Creek High School. Thank you for a career of serving your community and Hamilton County.
Dr. Roy J. Shipley, Ed. D.
Athletic Director
Sale Creek Middle High School