Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Employee Recognition topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Miami-Dade honors long-serving employees with service awards
Summary
Miami-Dade County held an employee recognition event Feb. 13 honoring staff with 30, 35 and 40 years of continuous service across multiple departments; Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and County Commissioner Marlene Bastien attended and delivered remarks.
Miami-Dade County officials gathered Feb. 13 to recognize dozens of county employees marking multi-decade careers, presenting service awards to staff with 30, 35 and 40 years of continuous employment across departments including Transit, Water and Sewer, Information Technology, Solid Waste and Community Action and Human Services.
County Commissioner Marlene Bastien opened the program, calling the honorees “the heart and soul of Miami-Dade County” and urging the room to celebrate their longtime public service. “You are the ones who keep our streets safe, our parks beautiful, our libraries thriving,” Bastien said.
The event included remarks from Kathy Burgos, chief of community services in the Office of the Mayor, and a surprise appearance by Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who praised the county staff for day-to-day operations and described Miami-Dade as “a trusted brand in our community.” “If Miami‑Dade County is on the scene, we’re working hard on their behalf and using their dollars wisely,” the mayor said.
Individual honorees cited during the program included Gilda Nunez (30 years, Animal Services and Public Works roles), Julie Exile Moore (30 years, survivor and shelter services), Solomon Harris (30 years, Older Adults / senior centers), Yvette Acol (described as 40 years, 3‑1‑1/transit call center), Luís (Louis) Gonzales (40 years, Information Technology / 9‑1‑1 systems), Charles Flynn (40 years, facilities), Benoit Giffard (40 years, Water & Sewer project inspector), Clifford Spiller (35 years, Solid Waste), Vincent Lopez (35 years, Fleet Management), Alfonso Stevens (35 years, Solid Waste supervisor), and James C. Williams Jr. (30 years, pump station maintenance). Several honorees or their supervisors spoke briefly about duties, training and on‑the‑job responsibilities; for example, IT leaders noted Gonzales’s work supporting computer‑aided dispatch systems for emergency services.
Presenters and department directors emphasized both institutional knowledge and daily operational impact. Margaret Brisbane, director of the Information Technology Department, said of one 40‑year honoree that “we’re all safer because of the work he has been doing,” citing long‑running support for 9‑1‑1 operations. Speakers repeatedly framed the awards as recognition of continuity, reliability and intergenerational service: multiple honorees were joined onstage by family members and by colleagues who described mentoring and training younger staff.
The mayor and commissioners used the ceremony to highlight how long tenures contribute to service delivery across county functions—transit operations, emergency dispatch, sanitation, sewer and pump station maintenance—and to thank employees for day‑to‑day responsiveness not always visible to the public. The program concluded with group photos and an invitation for honorees and guests to meet the mayor.
The county did not announce policy changes, budget actions or formal votes during the recognition event. Remarks were ceremonial and focused on employee appreciation, examples of service milestones, and brief personal remarks from a selection of awardees, family members and department leaders.
