Four area emergency responders were singled out for outstanding service last week during an event hosted by the Greenville-Pitt County Chamber of Commerce to thank all first responders for their efforts.
The chamber accepted nominations for four awards from agencies across Pitt County and announced the winners during a dinner for first responders at ECU’s Murphy Center sponsored by Avient and Southern Bank
Zach Martin, a State Highway Patrol trooper was recognized posthumously as Outstanding Law Enforcement Officer of the Year. Martin, 35, died in February after a 2022 diagnosis of Ewing sarcoma bone cancer. He was a part of Troop A, which serves the Greenville area, and previously served with the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office and Belhaven Police Department. He is survived by a wife and two sons.
Nadia Hamed of Greenville Fire-Rescue was recognized as Outstanding EMT of the Year, and her fellow GFR member, Nick Horvath, was recognized as Outstanding Fire-Rescue Employee of the year. Alexis Butts with Pitt County Emergency Management was named Outstanding Telecommunicator of the Year.
The event was open to all first responders including the Pitt County Sheriff’s Office, municipal and campus police departments, fire and rescue, emergency medical and volunteer fire personnel.
“The chamber was honored to recognize first responders in Pitt County for their selfless service,” said Trent McGee, president and CEO of the chamber. “With the generous support from several local businesses, the chamber was able to make this event a celebratory occasion for the brave men and women who give of themselves day after day.”
Aileen Peacock, the chamber’s events director, said Thursday’s event was the 15th installment of the dinner, which resumed in 2023 after a hiatus beginning in 2020. She said it took on added significance since she, McGee and two coworkers, Lauren Phillips and Kimber Stone, were injured in an April 27, 2022, wreck on Memorial Drive in Greenville.
“Thinking about our program of work for last year, after our accident especially, we realized while they have their own individual events and they are celebrated on a smaller level throughout the year, whether restaurants are giving them deals to come in or free meals or offering celebrations for their family to show their appreciation, there wasn’t one overarching event to celebrate first responders,” Peacock said. “It had even more meaning for us after our accident, so we decided let’s definitely bring this back and we had a lot of great feedback last year so we said let’s keep it going.”
Nominations were accepted from emergency agencies and the larger community, Peacock said. The nominations were reviewed by a committee from the chamber.
Peacock said the criteria was broad but included overcoming personal obstacles and going above and beyond in their professional roles.
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