Winter Springs committee recommends David Smith and Lt. Col. Chad Biering as Hometown Heroes

The Winter Springs Veterans Committee voted by voice to recommend David Smith and Lieutenant Colonel Chad Biering as this year’s Hometown Heroes, Chairperson Paul Dillman said at the meeting.

The recommendation follows the committee’s review of three nominations, including one posthumous candidate. Paul Dillman, chairperson, read the nominations and announced the committee’s voice vote that selected David Smith and Lieutenant Colonel Chad Biering as the two honorees. “David Smith is our hometown hero along with Lieutenant Colonel Chad Biering,” Chairperson Paul Dillman said during the vote.

Why it matters: the committee’s recommendation will go to the city for final approval and the selected names are expected to be included on the veterans monument and recognized at the city’s Veterans Day observance.

What happened: members discussed whether to select more than one honoree and weighed historical recognition against encouraging local submissions. One committee member noted that an application for nominee Eric Brown arrived after the stated deadline: “The application for Eric Brown was actually received on Friday, July 3 after the deadline,” the committee member said, and recommended deferring that nomination to next year. The clerk confirmed the committee’s role was to make a recommendation to the city and that the city could accept or select an alternate nominee.

Background and next steps: the committee indicated the Veterans Day ceremony and placement of a hometown-hero plaque on the veterans monument are tied to the city’s approval. Staff told the committee the plaque placement will be completed before this year’s Veterans Day event and that the city ultimately determines final recognition.

The committee’s selection was approved by a voice vote; specific roll-call tallies were not recorded in the meeting transcript. The committee will forward its recommendation to the City Commission for final approval.