Greetings to all NFIC members,

I trust that all who had the opportunity to attend the NFIC training at the NFA this past December had a safe trip home and enjoyed the holiday season. I was happy to see so many familiar faces and meet so many new members during the meeting. For those of you who did not attend the training, I would encourage you to contact other regional members and make an effort to maintain a NFIC relationship.

Although we had a short time to meet, train and discuss NFIRS issues, I am grateful to the USFA for their continued support and hard work in making this training opportunity a reality. I am also grateful to all the members who made the trip and continue to support and maintain NFIRS, given the many obstacles they must deal with daily.

During our meeting, it was clear that the NFIC membership has changed quite a bit in the past two years. Undoubtedly, we will see many new members again when we meet in 2009. Along with these foreseeable changes in membership, we must recognize that sparse meetings and limited user communications can by no means adequately address NFIC and NFIRS issues as they arise during the year.

Without a coordinated approach to data collection and incident interpretation, future efforts at data integrity may be of little consequence. Networking and training are essential to maintaining and improving data quality. Loss of support to those directly responsible for the promotion and focus of a program can only result in a haphazard, inefficient system that will do little to help address the loss of life and property to fire.

NFIC’s role may have changed during these past few years, but there is a very real need for the services we can offer and the expertise that we can bring to the table. This association must remain open to changes in our operations and committing resources where necessary to continue our work, Fighting Fire with Facts.

Thank you for your vote of confidence in allowing me to serve this term as your president. I will be calling on you, so feel free to call on me if I can be of service.

Sincerely,
Virginia Garza, NFIC President