CAMARILLO — The Ventura County Fire Department honored five people for their lifesaving actions, a volunteer of the year and the outstanding achievements of employees with its 25th Annual Awards, announced today.
Each year, the department recognizes firefighters, dispatchers and members of the public who go above and beyond in the service of others. This year’s awards ceremony is being held virtually to maintain safety measures during the coronavirus pandemic. A video of the event is available on our YouTube channel at
https://youtu.be/itSkWxrHE0o. Additionally, it will be broadcast on CAPS Channel 6, starting March 28 at 8 p.m.
Medal of Valor winners John Paul Taylor and Aaron Fredette, both of Oxnard, were surfing when they saved two people who were tossed overboard from a boat in swells that quickly rose to more than 10 feet.
Livesaving Citation winners Justine Garfinkel of Westlake Village, and Michele and Jay Borenstein of Oak Park, spotted a man who collapsed with a heart attack, called 911 and provided cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) until paramedics could arrive and restart the man’s heart with a defibrillator.
(Editor’s Note – For downloadable photos of the winners, click
here. Images are approved for use, courtesy of “The Ventura County Fire Department.” For further background information on award recipients, please contact the Public Information Office at (805) 389-9769 or email
piofire@ventura.org).
The 2021 List of Honorees include:
Employee of the Year
Administrative Services Bureau (Camarillo) – Capt. Casey Rosdail (Santa Clarita resident)
Business Services Bureau (Camarillo) – Paul Bell (Oxnard resident)
Fire Prevention Bureau (Camarillo) – Ruben Luna (Camarillo resident)
Support Service Bureau (Camarillo) – John Davis (Oxnard resident)
Aviation/Wildland Division (Oxnard) – Celine Moomey (Ojai resident)
Dispatcher of the Year
Chris Walsh (Fire Communications Center in Camarillo) (Agoura Hills resident)
Volunteer of the Year
Sandra Rowe (Camarillo resident)
Firefighter of the Year
Battalion 1 (Camarillo) – HazMat Officer Mike Williams (Thousand Oaks resident)
Battalion 2 (Camarillo) – Engineer Ryan Burkett (Ojai resident)
Battalion 3 (Newbury Park) – Firefighter Kyle Morrell (Camarillo resident)
Battalion 4 (Simi Valley) – Firefighter Christopher Walker (Simi Valley resident)
Battalion 5 (Malibu) – Captain Marcos Aviles (Fillmore resident)
Fire Company of the Year – Medic Rescue Engine 31, B Shift – Thousand Oaks
Captain Phil Corsi (Ventura resident)
Engineer Greg Peters (Camarillo resident)
Firefighter Kevin Lundgren (Moorpark resident)
Firefighter Robert Molina (Oxnard resident)
Firefighter Paramedic Niko Gallardo (Oxnard resident)
Lifesaving Citation Medal
Justine Garfinkel (Westlake Village resident)
Michele Borenstein (Oak Park resident)
Jay Borenstein (Oak Park resident)
Medal of Valor
John Paul Taylor (Oxnard resident)
Aaron Fredette (Oxnard resident)
