Examples of this campaign... examples of the character behind the candidates

Being a writer, photojournalist and generally all around media in various situations, I am afforded opportunities to see many sides of different situations. So, recently I was helping out placing signs for a couple of the candidates I believe in for this race. I came upon one set of signs I had placed and was adding another set of signs to the same site and just had to laugh and take the following pictures.




Obviously they tried to put two signs
very close to cover ours.

  There's been no doubt that the opposing candidates have a tremendous budget (or at least they've pulled out all the stops to defeat the incumbent and new candidate opposing them) and can outdo their opponents in signage and door hangers, but double signage on top the opponents is simply ridiculous!  Better yet, it's really immature! And to prove it so, Mother Nature blew them down and left their opponents standing! How hilarious! I never touched them. Drivers passing by watched as I placed the new shorter sign and then got my camera to take the pictures. It was just too good to pass up. 


Are they afraid if they don't try to double up and cover up the opponents, that the public won't know who to vote for? Do they think the public can't figure out who is the right candidate from one sign? Is twice as much better or more powerful looking? I think not.



They just have too much time and money to waste and it's showing before they even get into office!  The pictures speak for themselves. Elect the candidates who are still standing. Commissioner Ranney has withstood the tests of time through many previous campaigns of conflict, he'll be able to withstand the future. Steve Solomon has great business experience and knows how to be a smart teammate to the board. Elect the right people so that the firefighters continue with the best wages, benefits and conditions that have been put in place for them and our district continues to enjoy the lowest taxes.

Elect Anderson, Solomon and Ranney! It's the smart vote!



Typical of their campaign.

Later in the day the weekend, this picture was afforded us to prove their antics. It's petty, inconvenient and time-consuming to have to backtrack over all a candidates signs to be sure all the other candidates are playing fair with integrity in the same sandbox. Alas, not so for this race. Worst yet, while most all candidates know you don't place signs in the right of way, this campaign doesn't seem to care. If they don't care about simple small county ordinances like these, what other rules won't they care about? So this is what we see all the time, placing signs in front of the ones they're trying to overcome.  They've been doing this alot lately, (cover-ups) but not to fear, we will expose all and name names very soon, so that everyone will know a life of corruption is no one's good example or one that benefits anyone!   

Union IAFF 2546 AFL-CIO Make NO Mistake, it's TRUE!

Unions.  The word strikes hard in most peoples hearts- some like it and some really don't. Unions are everywhere and sometimes they serve a good purpose, sometimes they don't. When they don't they're just plain ludicrous. AFL-CIO doesn't set well with most people's memories. Just those initials drums up memories of strikes and nightmares out of Detroit and Chicago. Teamsters and major issues in the industries up north. Now, it's associated with our firefighters and the IAFF 2546 Union.   Labor Unions (which is what this is) were created for the sole purpose of banding the workers together for bargaining power for their benefits, their working conditions, their wages and to be able to be a unified force for strikes or lockouts.

Let's explore all those purposes in light of the Fire Department. Southern Manatee had no fear of it's benefits being changed because this board and these commissioners had been the ones to give these benefits to them and protect them. Why would they begin to go back and take anything away? What good would that do? Who would that serve? The board is focused on creating an environment where the firefighters WANT to be there and need not worry about certain things. Benefits for them and their families was one huge relief. Longevity to retirement is a huge asset for any department and Southern Manatee boasted that with several of their personnel as has recently been noted in the media.

Part 3: Corruption... seeps in ever so slightly.

All of this came to light with a letter. Actually, it was a blindside by a fellow commissioner to his own board. Usually that's how corruption starts. It's like rust where there's one little weak spot and it begins to corrode, and the rust grows. So it did with this. And the letter was the beginning of the exposure of just how deep this corruption ran.

A letter was read publicly by Commissioner Ruben to the Board from a "Steve Stevenson" making very personal accusations against the board, district and department that only someone from inside department could know or have such partial information about. Many of these accusations were half truths and more lies because they didn't have the whole story or all the facts. Anyone can imagine the "rest of the story" based on only part of the facts. If someone has a bad impression or an axe to grind with the management, then nothing is going to look right no matter what happens. And so a letter full of innuendos and misleading accusations was read publicly at a Fire District board meeting by Commissioner Ruben knowing full well it would stir up a controversy and catch his fellow commissioners off guard. Commissioner Ruben was in "cahoots" with the writer, Steve Stevenson.

Then at a subsequent meeting, Pete Donchenko, a firefighter and a Battalion Chief with Southern Manatee Fire and Rescue District, reveals that he is the author of the letter under the assumed name of Steve Stevenson. Several of his accusations have been addressed already in the blog posts. He's disgruntled because the board chose someone other than his friend, Deputy Chief Berry to be the new fire chief when Chief Hennessy retired. So, Pete Donchenko broke rank and file and took matters into his own hands in favor of the Union taking control of the board to meet his own personal agenda because if Commissioner Ruben's promise had been kept to his friend Deputy Chief Berry, then Donchenko would have been moved up to Berry's rank of Deputy Chief, as promised. This all becomes very sordid. If the Union gains control, many good people will LOSE their jobs and the wrong unqualified people will be in positions they didn't earn except to do the Union dirty work or be someone's buddy. No fire department should run that way!

Now, Donchenko, has chosen personal leave time because he finds the fire department environment "too hostile" according to various sources. This raises my hackles to think that the men I always knew who protected each other at all times on all calls are now divided and infighting because of this Union business. It doesn't seem to me that the Union is looking out for their best interests! Especially when a perfectly able bodied BATTALION CHIEF is taking personal leave time (that we taxpayers are still paying him for!)  because of the hostile environment he helped create!

Furthermore, when a person makes a spectacle of himself at public board meetings in an obnoxious and hostile manner, such as Pete Donchenko has, one should make sure their life is impeccable. Donchenko cannot claim that. Being obviously oppositional to the board as Donchenko did for the record, he exhibited poor character for a firefighter. His attitude is reflective of his history. Deception obviously doesn't bother him (like the letter he decieved the fire department with )and, he has been charged wtih threatening his wife, prostitution solicitation, domestic violence, multiple suits for non-payment, numerous traffic infractions, multiple evictions & foreclosures, and wage garnishment. Fire department policy requires an officer to report any incident he's involved in to the department. Donchenko failed to comply. Again, is Deputy Chief Berry covering for his friend? Corruption seeps in so easily.

Part 2: Misappropriation

Misappropriation. That's a big word for misusing things or funds that aren't a persons. When someone is in a public office or position it's important to remember that what you have is provided by the taxpayers and you must remain above reproach. It's always good to be held accountable but often times from the inside looking further in, if you're not in the management end of things, you really don't understand the big picture.

That's the case with all the false accusations by the fake named person, Steve Stevenson who later revealed himself to be Batallion Chief Pete Donchenko. Remember what I said about being above reproach? We're gonna come back to that on Donchenko in particular. He's accused the board of selling the retiring chief, Tom Hennessy his laptop for a $1.00. That's generally to cost of a "gift" when someone gets something. It was perfectly appropriate to do so. It did not strap the district and it was suitable for a faithful servant after 29 years of service to the department as a parting gift. But Donchenko considered it worth complaining about in order to smear a good man's name, though there's nothing he can prove that the department is lacking because of this gesture.  



Commissioner Ruben

What's truly inappropriate is the use of a fire station for a child's birthday party! AND the use of the fire district credit card to buy that child's birthday cake!  Consider the situation had a call come in and everyone had to mobilize in the midst of a child's birthday party. This was reported to the Commissioners that one of their own, Commissioner Ruben had done this very thing and the persons reporting it didn't feel it was appropriate. They are right. In the history of the commission, no commissioner has ever used fire facilities for personal use like that. Tours happen all the time but they are planned for and it's explained that if a call comes in it will be broken off immediately. A birthday party is an event that is time, personnel and property consuming. And to think, we taxpayers actually bought the birthday cake! Perhaps Commissioner Ruben paid the credit card back but nonetheless it doesn't look good either way.

So, What's Been Going On? The Union, Misappropriation, Personal Agendas and Corruption

The Union, Misappropriation, Personal Agendas and Corruption

Welcome to what will be a mega-part posting about the subjects in this title. There is much to disclose here and I want to be sure it's understood fully by the voting public so be patient and keep checking in. Please understand that alot of the information you recieve here can be found in public records or has been personally verified by me directly. I realize many will read this and wonder how does she know? Well, there really still are firefighters out there with integrity who don't like what the Union has done to their brotherhood  and the divisive nature of it. Just because every other fire department in the state or country is in the AFL-CIO IAFF 2546 Union doesn't mean Manatee County has to be, and particularly Southern Manatee! Individualism still runs deep in this district.

Prior to September 11, firefighters were just firemen (or women as the case may be) who did their job for us in the backgrounds of our lives. These folks were taken for granted and expected to do their duty as a part of our lives in our world. With September 11th, we saw them in action in a way we never realized they worked but for them,  it was an every day, every call event only in a much more concentrated and disastrous catastrophe. September 11th etched heroes into our minds with incredible pictures of regular men and women in firefighter gear going beyond human capacity to handle an inhuman crisis.

Since then firefighters have become our heroes and been more highly esteemed. Children have aspired to be a firefighter and the firefighting community has enjoyed a popularity they had known existed but it hadn't been so prominent pre-September 11. Now they were in the limelight along with the other emergency personnel forces in our country that we depend on like police etc. But,sadly as with any organization, even firefighters are subject to leadership that falls prey to their own personal agendas and corruption.

The Union

Southern Manatee came into existence via the merger of two small but fierce districts back in 1990. The merger was an emotional one but worth it in the long run as the two very powerful and spirited departments came together they proved very strong as one unit. The Board of Commissioners has managed the district wisely in an effort to make it one of the very best in the state. Over the years, there have been "takeovers" of the board by special interests groups who wished to look out for their own areas only but this has not lasted, thankfully. No district should ever be run by one "special interest" group, be it a group of people who get elected from one specific neighborhood and want very specific fire issues taken care of and focused on for them or a Union that is focused on it's own gain and controlling the firefighters needs and benefits which ultimately only benefits the Union and it's leadership. Special interests serve no one but the special interests. These are simply personal hidden agenda's being fed by personnel with egos that don't fit the department.

What Do Fire Commissioners Really Do? and why should I care?

Eleven districts in Manatee County
not counting the city & volunteer departments

Fire Departments are organized in different ways from one municipality to another. Traditionally, Manatee County has consisted of multiple districts, eleven to be exact at the moment in just the county, not counting what's the city and some miscellaneous volunteer departments. Some are small and some are mega-million dollar budgeted districts managed by fire commissions. In Manatee County this has worked very well for a long time, quite efficiently with very few hiccups in the system. Those ten districts are: Cedar Hammock, West Manatee, Southern Manatee, East Manatee, Braden River, North River, Parrish (volunteer), Longboat Key, and Myaaka City. Fire Commissions were originally appointed by the Governor many years ago and then about sixteen years ago, they became elected officials- which meant they had to "earn" the people's vote.



Commissioner Ranney enjoys delivering a new
peice of equipment!

 Now, most people in Southern Manatee Fire District haven't got a clue what a Fire Commissioner does. Even more importantly, most people don't even know Fire Commissioners exist and actually manage their Fire Departments. Let me tell you what a Fire Commissioner in our district does. They get paid $500/month and it's taxed like any regular paycheck. They reside over a monthly board meeting the third thursday of every month, that is open to the public anytime, but usually doesn't get attended except when a controversy is brewing. Commissioners regularly take turns attending the Volunteer Firefighters Meetings on the first Monday's of the month. They volunteer their time to all the charity events the district may be involved in, help deliver new equipment, make themselves available for training exercises, and often oversee various events their firefighters may be involved in. Many commissioners have scanners at home or in their vehicles so they can monitor calls to be sure response times and responses are proper and accurate. And many commissioners spend time at the various stations with the firefighters, visiting during the holidays, delivering meals to those shifts who have to be away from families during holiday times, or donating stuffed animals for the trucks for children in crisis situations.

The Commissioners of Southern Manatee oversee a $12 million budget that they have managed at a reduced rate due to all the foreclosures [less houses and homeowners reduces the fire tax income to the district]. All the while under this reduced income, they've managed to REPLACE every fire station with a new thirty (30) year state-of-the-art building that sits within a three (3) square mile radiius of every resident in our district for the quickest response time in the county, if not state. While managing that same low budget, they've provided the best equipment for the fire fighters, best training, cooperated with other districts in training events, managed to build up to four men per truck (instead of the standard two - which in essence employs more firefighters) and makes our district a higher ISO rating for insurance purposes. Our firefighters enjoy the best equipment to do their jobs with. Even administratively, equipment is top notch.

VOTERS BEWARE! read it all here and pay close attention!

 I cannot emphasize it enough as to how important it is to our district to vote correctly in this fire race. I think though you as a voter should understand the process of the Fire Commission and what it entails and how we the voter/homeowners are affected. Now if you think because you're a renter you AREN'T affected, think again, you are because your landlords are. So please pay close attention and read on.

Here over the next week, and probably for years to come as need be, you will learn what happens behind the scenes in managing our fire department and why it's not always a good idea to throw out "traditional" methods of doing things (as a recent UNION driven Sarasota Herald Tribune article suggested), or welcoming in the new "union" ways (as unfortunately our firefighters were snowballed and fearfully led into doing last July 2009)! You'll learn what's actually running these campaigns are personal agenda's to destroy years of good honest service. PERSONAL AGENDA'S based on personal ambition and greed driven by the Union's powermongering amongst a brotherhood that has been a true brotherhood for as long as I've known it!

And that's why I am sick of slick and sleazy politics weaseling their way into my district time after time with people who's character I wouldn't trust wearing what appears to the uniforms of hero's in our community. For over 16 years I have followed this Fire District and watched some pretty lousy antics AND seen some seriously marvelous times. Through all of it I have been proud to know the commissioners, and many of the firefighters! When firefighters not worthy of the uniform have risen to the top, they're generally ousted by one of their own undoings and failings. It's inevitable. The cream will always rise and the sour stuff is always discarded. That has happened alot of late with quite a few who've found themselves "fired" for noncompliance with workmans comp orders (such as may be the case with former firefighter Jerry Bennett who so disrespectfully greeted Commissioners Ranney and Anderson in the last Commission meeting, and in front of a visiting fire chief, no less!) or others who've just had one difficulty after resulting in their leave of absence from the department (such as Pete Donchenko, whom while checking public records is simply embarassing but we'll get to that later.)