1_Heroes-banner-generic

On April 18, 2015, over 100 men and women in law enforcement and corrections came together as part of the first annual Telmate Heroes Dinner.

Kicking off the American Jail Association Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina, Telmate hosted the event to celebrate the past year’s Telmate Heroes award recipients. They include:

Among the evening’s speakers were Telmate President, Kevin O’Neil, Executive Director of the B&G Club of Western Treasure Valley, Matt Sorensen, and award-winning storyteller and comedian, Kelly Swanson.

Sorensen kicked off the event with a heartfelt candle lighting ceremony to symbolize the contagious nature of hope and how each individual can make a far reaching difference in another person’s life. With full audience participation, Sorensen proved how the light from one candle can quickly be passed to many others to turn a dark room into one filled with light and hope.

2015 Heroes Tribute Dinner

Telmate Heroes Tribute Dinner speakers (from left) Director of the B&G Club of Western Treasure Valley, Matt Sorensen, Telmate President, Kevin O’Neil, Executive, award-winning storyteller and comedian, Kelly Swanson, and Telmate Chief Marketing Officer, Jeff Hansen.

Guests were moved by the emotional tribute to law enforcement from keynote speaker Swanson, who spoke about the “unsung heroes” from her life, and her respect and gratitude for the heroism shown day in and day out by those brave and dedicated individuals working in corrections.

Visitors, awardees and guests were all deeply touched by the outpouring of gratitude among the crowd.

“This event nailed it on the head,” said Hero award recipient Jamie Harris, Detective Sergeant from Lake County, IN.

“Thank you for taking the time to recognize all of the unsung heroes in the field of corrections and inviting me to a wonderful evening to kick off the 34th AJA Conference,” added Lt. Gene Coppinger #1105, CJM of the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office.

“Having been in the corrections industry for over 12 years, I have witnessed public service at its finest,” O’Neil said. “Here at Telmate, we are a tech company and we build innovative technologies to feature at events. But tonight was about these heroes who make a difference day in and day out.”

For more information about the heroes program, please visit www.telmate.com/heroes.