Heroes in our midst

Bryce Alderton

Matt Silver dove into the Bolsa Chica reserve again and again --

risking his own life in an effort to save another.

While the motorist who drove his sports utility vehicle into the

reserve on June 6 did not survive, the selfless efforts of Silver and

those of Bill Babshoff an off-duy state lifeguard were recognized

Tuesday.

But, it takes an effort from the whole community to make Huntington

Beach the city it is today.

That’s why nine individuals, citizens and public employees, were

recognized Tuesday at the Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce’s 30th

annual Public Safety Awards Luncheon at the Hilton Waterfront Beach

Resort in Huntington Beach.

Huntington Beach Fire Chief Michael Dolder stood at the podium dressed

in uniform. He was touched by a community that comes together to help

when the times call for it.

“They are heroes in every sense of the word,” Dolder said of

recipients.

Guest speaker Justice William Bedsworth of the 4th District Court of

Appeals ended his speech with the words, “thank you” for the tireless

jobs police, fire, marine safety and lifeguards perform daily.

“It’s a damn tough place to be an [officer],” Bedsworth said. The

Huntington Beach Police Department presented an award for merit to

Reserve Officer Howard Sharpe and Sgt. Gary Meza and Sgt. Guy Dove.

Sharpe has donated his time to the city’s search and rescue operations

for 18 years. Meza currently heads a 12-week program that educates and

trains citizens about the inner workings of the police department and

Dove manages the city jail, where he has worked to install a new security

system and new revenue earning programs.

Good Samaritan awards were presented to officers Jerry Goodspeed and

Jayson Lewis of the police department, whose quick actions saved the life

of a small child. Mel Goldberg and Dr. Steve Graboff, two licensed

emergency radio operators with the fire department, also received awards.

Goldberg and Graboff brought the awards back to their 75-member

volunteer organization, the Huntington Beach Radio Amateur Civil

Emergency Services, which provides communications to public works, fire,

police and marine safety during emergencies. The program is entirely

volunteer-based, therefore it doesn’t cost the city anything.

“It’s an excellent program. I couldn’t ask for anything more,” said

emergency services coordinator Gloria Morrison, who has been involved

with the program for 16 years.

Babshoff a lifeguard at Huntington State Beach, and Huntington Beach

resident Silver each received an award for heroism for their efforts to

revive the 48-year-old man who’s car plunged into the Bolsa Chica

wetlands June 6. Silver located the victim under the water and with

Babshoff’s help, pulled the man to shore where they began performing

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation until the Huntington Beach fire department

arrived. Unfortunately, the victim couldn’t be revived and died at the

scene.

As Master of Ceremonies Ron Shenkman succinctly put it, “All people

representing law enforcement are our heroes.”

* BRYCE ALDERTON is the news assistant. He can be reached at (714)

965-7173 or by e-mail at bryce.alderton@latimes.com