After many thousands of emergency and non-emergency calls for service answered and 4 and a half years on the desk (8 years total with non-public safety dispatching) I am hanging up my headset tonight. I cannot even begin to describe what I am feeling right now. I knew this would be an interesting job and experience; I could never have imagined how absolutely correct I would be. It has been a whirlwind from crazy October Snow Storms that cancel Halloween, to a tragic Plane Crash, to dealing with Super-Storm Sandy, to all the other everyday craziness; I could not have asked to spend the time with a better group of people who are the epitome of professionals.

From birthdays to Christmas and funerals to weddings I have experienced it all from behind the desk. There have been amazing times and bad times and through it all we have grown together as a family. It is fitting that this week is National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week. Not only do I get to express my deepest gratitude to everyone for the work that we do every day but everyone in the country also gets a glimpse into our world. This job is certainly not for everyone, but those who can do it have a passion like I have never seen before. I wish that everyone was able to experience this job just to have a better understanding of what we as Dispatchers go through on a daily basis, our normal day is usually the public’s worst day. We live with that even on our days off. I will never forget what I have learned doing this job, and never forget the people that I have interacted with.

Tonight, on my last night, I am so touched by all of the outpouring of support and well wishes. From my coworkers throwing me a party with some of the most delicious food I have ever had (Thanks Guys!!) to the endless e-mails, text messages, Facebook posts/messages, phone calls, and over the radio messages. I am simply blown away and this just solidifies what I have known all along, I have the best second family anywhere.

I have met some the most dedicated, professional and wonderful people from both sides of the radio while working. I am so eternally grateful to each and every one of them for making my time so amazing. I want to thank them all for everything and I look forward to the next chapter of my life as well as all of theirs.

This is not the end for me by a long shot. I am moving over from public safety dispatching to hopefully a just as prosperous career as an Air Traffic Controller. For the next 17 weeks I will be in training classes at the FAA academy in Oklahoma City. I look forward to this amazing opportunity and know that my experiences with this career will carry over into my new career.

With that being said, I say thank you again. I look forward to keeping in touch with everyone.

Sean Walsh

Operator 180, Signing Off