Three Honored At Tri-Association Dinner During ISC Solutions
Members of the security industry partnered with the U.S. Airport and Seaport Police to honor three men last Wednesday night in New York City for a lifetime of achievements related to security.
At the annual Tri-Association Awards Dinner, the Security Industry Association (SIA), the Electronic Security Association (ESA) and the Central Station Alarm Association (CSAA) presented the George R. Lippert Memorial Award to Leo Guthart and the Triton Award to Cecil Hogan. The U.S. Airport and Seaport Police presented the Fred V. Morrone Memorial 9/11 Award to retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen.
The Morrone Award is named for the late superintendent of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department, the highest-ranking of 37 Port Authority officers to perish at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. Allen, a former Coast Guard commandant who retired from the service in June and is perhaps best known as the federal government’s national incident commander for this summer’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, received the award in recognition of his decades of work defending the nation.
In accepting the award, Allen recalled the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, but stressed that people should not focus on the losses of the past but, rather, continually look to the future and strive to make things better. He referenced the Alan Jackson song “Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning,” which is about Sept. 11, and implored the audience to work to get the world turning again for those for whom it has stopped. The private sector, he said, has a crucial role to play in that effort.
“People may think this is just a trade show,” he said, referring to ISC Solutions, the security products show that is related to the dinner. “But you should know when you sit down at the dinner table that you are incrementally improving the safety of this country and our way of life. You are slowly restarting our world.”
On Wednesday morning, Allen cut the ribbon during the opening ceremony at ISC Solutions at Jacob Javits Convention Center.
Guthart is chairman of the Board of Directors of Topspin Partners of Roslyn Heights, N.Y. He was president, CEO and chairman of the Board of Ademco before it was bought by Honeywell, where he worked as CEO of the Security and Fire Solutions Group after the purchase. He still serves as chairman of the Board of Directors of the Security Industry Alarm Coalition.
After being presented with the Lippert Award -- which recognizes outstanding contributions to SIA and the security industry -- Guthart reviewed the progress of the security industry, particularly in terms of technology, since he entered it in 1964, when it was “something for banks and jewelers and nothing else."
“I am really proud of our industry,” Guthart said. “I think everybody in this room should be proud. It’s just great to see. … I have been able to watch it come from nothing to something significant.”
Hogan is founder and president of Security Consultants, Inc. of Memphis, Tenn. He sat on the ESA Executive Committee for 13 years and served as ESA president from 2002 to 2004.
During his speech after receiving the Triton Award – which recognizes industry statesmanship and efforts to promote good working relationships among the three associations – Hogan focused on the importance of associations, saying the ones in which he has been involved have given him extensive opportunities to learn and become a better businessman. He said he recognized the value of associations early on and added, to some laughter, that he joined them for a simple reason.
“I knew it was going to make me some money,” he said.
Also at the dinner, SIA, ESA and CSAA made contributions to the associations’ respective foundations -- the Ashlar Foundation, the Alarm Industry Research and Educational Foundation and the CSAA Foundation.