MEMS ACADEMY
NEWSLETTER UPDATE - PAGE 1 OF 8
VOLUME 2, EDITION 4
COL RICHARD D. GROSSMAN
CSMR TRAINING COMMAND CO
PASSED AWAY MONDAY 15DEC14
COL Richard D. Grossman, Training Command CO,
California State Military Reserves, Passed away in his
sleep early Monday morning, on 15 December 2014.
He had waged a brave, private battle against cancer over the past
two years, appearing to be in remission and doing well. His death
was an unexpected shock to all.
COL Grossman was one of the longest-serving soldiers in the
CSMR, starting his career with the 49th Military Police Brigade in
the late 1970’s, and continuing through his current position.
COL Grossman was an icon in the CSMR and was known and respected for his support, knowledge
and loyalty to the organization. He was a leader among his peers. He will be missed by all.
Col Grossman was appointed a CSMR Warrant Officer in 1986 and later commissioned a First
Lieutenant in 1989. He was appointed Director of Operations, Plans and Training for the CSMR
in January 2001. His assignments included Communications Officer, Battalion Operations Officer,
Brigade Training Officer, Deputy Commander, and Commander.
Colonel Grossman attended the University of California, Berkeley and the California State University, Hayward earning a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Management. He later
attended the John F. Kennedy University School of Law and earned a Doctor of Jurist Prudence.
He was licensed to practice law before the Supreme Court of California, the United States District
Court (Northern District of California) and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Colonel Grossman’s military education includes the Army Institute for Professional Development
Army Pre-commission Course, the U.S. Army Ordnance, Missile & Munitions Center & School
Bomb Technician Course and the Weapons of Mass Destruction Bomb Technician Course, the
Advanced Study Program of the National Defense University and the U.S. Marine Corps Command
and Staff College.
Colonel Grossman served for 28yrs with the Walnut Creek Police Department retiring in 2002 as
Sergeant. His assignments included senior firearms instructor and firearms training team supervisor,
senior bomb technician and bomb squad supervisor, SWAT team member assigned as the senior
sniper, field training officer, public relations and crime prevention officer. He served for 11yrs in
the Detective Bureau with assignments including forgery and fraud investigations, commercial
burglary and auto theft investigations.
PAGE 2
TABLE TOP EXERCISE PRACTICUM
NOVEMBER 2014 TRAINING
The MEMS Team conducted a Nov Table top exercise at the Regional Operations
Center, Joint Forces Training Base. The intense two day training qualifies
soldiers for their Practicum portions of the MEMS Student Guidelines, enabling
them to earn their Basic, Senior, and Master MEMS certification.
The Table Top Exercises are conducted twice a year by the MEMS Team.
PAGE 3
AWARDS FOR MAJ GALO PESANTES
MAJ Pesantes was presented with the State
Guard of the United States Commendation
Award of his achievement in promoting the
MEMS Program.
The award was presented by 1GS Fred
Tredy, California State Director MEMS
Academy and Deputy Commandant of the
MEMS Academy (Operations)
DUAL AWARDS FOR SSG CARL HEINTZ
SSG Carl Heintz, Lead Instructor / MEMS
Team, was selected by the University of
Phoenix as the 2014 Southern California
Campus “Academic Faculty Member of the
Year” in the College of Criminal Justice
and Security.
SSG Heintz was also selected from over
1100 faculty members to be honored by
receiving the University of Phoenix
“Distinguished Faculty Award” for 2014.
(Pictured L to R: MAJ Pesantes, SSG Heintz, 1SG Tredy)
PAGE 4
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND CIVILIANS:
Education leads to significant knowledge gain and is a significant component in providing preparation for
future events. Education provides perspective, it allows us to form opinions, interpret data, develop points
of view, and process information as it relates to our world. Education is not limited to childhood experience,
classroom lectures, or textbooks; rather it is obtained as we progress through the stages of life and can be a
significant component of preparation for future events, including those associated with localized emergency
management and disaster preparations.
The relationship between the level of educational attained and disaster preparedness is not well established, yet
there does exist a significant amount of research linking educational intervention with disaster preparation and
awareness. Since emergencies can happen at any time and in any location, all citizens are vulnerable to natural
disasters and large-scale emergencies. The question is not whether or not a disaster or emergency will occur,
but when. Therefore it is important for all citizens to be prepared, and it is critical to participate in educational
activities leading to increased emergency response, which will directly benefit individuals, communities,
organizations, cities, states, and the United States as a whole.
Emergencies come in many forms, and proper training and planning helps all citizens understand how to
react during an emergency. These emergencies generally challenge the normal channels of authority and
communication, leading to poor decision making. Proper educational training in emergency management for
all citizens, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, mobility, etc., reduce feelings of
anxiousness and fear during an emergency and helps individuals make good decisions ensuring life safety
during times of chaos.
Unfortunately, many citizens leave the responsibility of emergency training up to first responders and
government/professional organizations. While these agencies provide excellent care to the public and undergo
a significant amount of emergency management training, they cannot provide immediate aid for everyone
during large-scale emergencies. Most disasters are experienced locally and incidents are typically managed at
the lowest jurisdictional level. As a result, many small, rural, and suburban communities may, quite possibly,
have to rely on their own resources for up to 72 hours before help arrives from regional, state, or federal levels.
Proper disaster preparedness training provides vital knowledge concerning the location and availability of
local resources, allowing them to ensure their own safety and mitigate the overall impact of the emergency.
Unfortunately, research on emergency preparedness education suggests that individuals who feel that they are
prepared for a disaster are often not and must, therefore, rely on those who are during times of need.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (www.fema.gov) as well as local city and government agencies
provide information regarding education and training for local and large-scale disasters. Education and training
lead to good decisions during times of crisis; some individuals choose to prepare while others do not. Which
one will you be?
SPC RABITOY / MEMS TEAM / S1 NCO
PAGE 5
MEMS CERTIFICATIONS UPDATE:
MILITARY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST ACADEMY
January 1st, 2015
This document contains the names of those dedicated soldiers who have invested the required time and energy
to improve their understanding of Emergency Management Response.
The soldiers listed on the page below have followed guidelines as delineated in the MEMS Academy Student
Guidelines, and have achieved the highly sought after status of being a certified specialist in the field of
emergency response.
The primary duties of the Academy State Directors (ASD) for the MEMS Academy are to:
• Coordinate and provide all logistical support for the MEMS program.
• Process all MEMS applications, FEMA courses, Table-Top exercises, and Practicum’s.
• Instruct and proctor all soldiers during multiple live face-to-face training modules.
• Approve awards of MEMS credentials and issue MEMS certificates/Flashes for Basic, Senior
and Master MEMS upon completion.
If your name does not appear on this list and you have a certified document obtained through the California
State Director of the MEMS Academy, or you have earned a higher level than one listed, please contact me at:
[email protected]
You have my personal assurance your information will be corrected in both the California State list of certified
MEMS students, and also within the State Guard Association of the United States Commandant of the MEMS
Academy database.
On behalf of the entire MEMS Team, I want to thank each of those 30 dedicated soldiers who believed they
would become a greater asset to the California State Military Reserves and to their community, by taking and
completing this course of study.
Since the inception of our MEMS Program there have been over 1117 soldiers who have participated in the
program and 573 MEMS certifications granted. Join them and become MEMS Certified.
This list is for those soldiers who have received their certification since September of 2014 or who were
missed on prior newsletters.
1SG (CA) Fred Tredy
California State Director
MEMS Academy
PAGE 6
MEMS CERTIFICATION UPDATE - CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5
Basic MEMS Certification
Senior MEMS Certification
BENNETT, ADAM
CANSIMBE, RALPH
BODNAR, JEFFERY
CHESMORE, BRIAN
BONAR, PABLO
FRIEDMAN, MATTHEW
BROWN, MARION (NM)
LOFLAND, SEAN (NM)
BRUJANDA, OFELIA (NM)
MACWILLIE, RONALD
CHIN, JANET
MATSUI, RYAN
CUTTS, CHRISTOPHER
RABITOY, ERIC
GELMAN, MARAT
GENTHE, WILLIAM
GOLIA, JAMES
GOMEZ, KIMBERLY (NM)
GUAJARDO, PABLO
HERZOG, BRIAN
HOFFMAN JEFFREY
HOOPER, BRIAN
KEBBAS-VEZIA RONNIE
Master MEMS Certification
KIRSTEN, PAUL
KOSMERl, ESMERALDA
MEDINA, ERICA (NM)
NAKAISHI, RUSSELL
NEAL, JEFFREY
QUESADA, ROBERT (NM)
RONK, CHRISTOPHOR
SERGIEFF, CHRISTOPHER
WILLIAMS, ERIC
ZASLOV, DAVID
CHESMORE, BRIAN
MATSUI, RYAN
PAGE 7
MEET YOUR MEMS ACADEMY INSTRUCTORS:
SPC Eric Rabitoy is welcomed to the
MEMS Instructor Team, and as a CSMR
soldier. He has been selected to serve
as the S1 NCO for the MEMS TEAM.
SPC (CA) Eric Rabitoy has over 21 years of experience as an employee within the California community
college system. For the past 9 years he has served as the Dean of Physical/Natural Sciences and Library
Services at Citrus College. For the prior 12 years he served as a full-time instructor within the Department of
Biology at the same institution and instructed a variety of Natural Science courses, including General Biology,
Physiology, Anatomy, and Natural History. He earned his Bachelors of Science degree in Biology from
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, his Master of Arts degree in Biology from the University of
California, Riverside, and his Doctorate in Educational Leadership from California State University, Fullerton,
where he currently teaches courses in educational research to doctoral students as an adjunct professor.
As an educator, SPC Rabitoy has been involved in the development and management of multiple educational
programs, including acquisition and assessment of STEM grant programs, development of tutorial and
Supplemental Instruction Programs, development of Associate Degree Nursing and Biotechnology Programs,
and the creation of Early College Programs aimed at providing Southern California high school students the
opportunity to earn college credits while simultaneously enrolled in high school curriculum. His professional
accomplishments include the publication of multiple lab manuals for use in college curriculum, ancillary
materials for college textbooks, and multiple manuscripts published in peer-reviewed educational and
scientific journals. He has presented the results of his educational research projects at several professional
conferences and is a member of the following professional organizations: American Educational Research
Association, Association of California Community College Teachers, National Association of Biology
Teachers, and the State Guard Association of the United States.
SPC Rabitoy began his military career on January 28, 2014, with the California State Military Reserve serving
as a member of the MEMS team. During his short tenure with the MEMS unit he has completed his Basic and
Senior MEMS certifications and is currently working toward his Master MEMS certification. SPC Rabitoy
currently serves as the Admin NCO for the MEMS Team and enjoys his activities within his unit and the
CSMR.
SPC Rabitoy has been married for 21 years and has two daughters, ages 17 and 15. He is an avid marathon
runner and triathlete and competes in multiple racing events each year. He holds a PADI Rescue Diver
certification and dives several times a month in the waters off of the Southern California coast. He enjoys
kayaking, fishing, hiking, spending quality time with his family, and serving as a soldier in the CSMR.
PAGE 8
YOUR MEMS ACADEMY INSTRUCTOR ROSTER:
GALO M. PESANTES
MAJ (CA) CSMR
MEMS UNIT OIC
WESTERN MEMS REGIONAL DIRECTOR
[email protected]
FRED TREDY
1SG (CA) CSMR
CA STATE MEMS DIRECTOR
[email protected]
ALCIDES ANDRADE
MSG (CA) CSMR
ADM NCO
[email protected]
GLENN MILLER
SFC (CA) CSMR
MEMS INSTRUCTOR
[email protected]
LIAM MURPHY
SGT (CA) CSMR
MEMS INSTRUCTOR / COORDINATOR NCO
[email protected]
CARL HEINTZ
SSG (CA) CSMR
MEMS LEAD INSTRUCTOR
[email protected]
DANNY C. FLUCKE
SGT (CA) CSMR
MEMS INSTRUCTOR / EDITOR
[email protected]
ERIC RABITOY
SPC (CA) CSMR
MEMS S1 NCO
[email protected]
Facebook Page: MEMS-Academy-CA