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August 27, 2008

Maine Warden Service Annual Honors

Winslow - The following awards were handed out at the Maine Warden Service’s annual meeting on Aug. 27 in Winslow. The event was attended by Commissioner Martin, members of the IF&W Advisory Council, the IF&W Legislative Committee, and other guests.

  • Medallion Award: Deputy Commissioner Paul Jacques was presented a Medallion Award from the National Association of Secretaries of State by Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap during the Maine Warden Service’s annual meeting. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to civic education or election education. “Paul Jacques has been a quiet leader for years working with young people,” said Secretary Dunlap. “Whether in his role as a legislator, sportsman or senior department official, Jacques has an instinctive understanding of the importance of civic engagement.”
  • Special Teamwork Award: Given to the Maine Warden Service by Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap to recognize the contributions made by wardens to enhance public highway safety. Bureau of Motor Vehicle detectives joined Maine game wardens to increase law enforcement patrols in the wake of five snowmobile fatalities in one weekend last February.
  • Maine Emergency Management Agency Special Recognition Awards: Presented by MEMA Director Rob McAleer to the more than 40 Maine Game Wardens who participated in the Aroostook County flood response in late April and early May.
  • Maine Drug Enforcement Agency Outstanding Achievement Award: To Game Warden Pilot Dan Dufault, presented by MDEA Regional Supervisor Gerry Baril, for his significant contributions in reducing illegal drug activity in Maine by his aerial identification of illegal drug plantings in the western Maine mountains.
  • 2007 NASBLA Boating Officer of the Year: To Game Warden Investigator Jason Luce, by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, for his outstanding efforts to ensure safety on Maine’s inland waterways.
  • Maine Warden Service Colonel’s Award: Presented by Col. Joel Wilkinson, to retired Maine State Police Major Timothy Doyle, for his commitment to building a partnership of cooperation among state law enforcement agencies.
  • Maine Warden Service “Warden of the Year:” To Reggie Hammond, a 17-year veteran who serves the Rangeley region of western Maine, and presented by his supervisor, Sgt. Rick Mills. Hammond is well respected among fellow wardens and community members for his commitment to the state’s fish and wildlife resources, particularly the enforcement of unlawful poaching activities and recreational vehicle laws.
  • Maine Warden Service Exemplary Service Award: To Game Wardens Ed Christie, for saving the life of an elderly man who others thought had died from choking during an off-duty incident at an Aroostook County restaurant; and to Rick Clowry and Scott Thrasher, for their persistent surveillance and eventual apprehension of a group of deer poachers.
  • Maine Warden Service Meritorious Service Award: To Game Wardens Eric Blanchard, John Lonergan, Jeremy Judd and Bruce Loring, for their unselfish and heroic efforts to rescue six individuals from fast-moving, dangerous waters during the Patriots Day Storm of 2007, and to Game Warden Phil Richter, for his unselfish and heroic effort to rescue a 14-year-old girl who wandered across thin ice to an island in the Ellsworth area.
  • Maine Warden Service Supervisor of the Year Award: To Sgt. Christopher Simmons, for his leadership in critical incidents, his organization of details, and his handling of investigations. Sgt. Simmons also is instrumental in improving Maine’s Operation Game Thief Program.
  • K-9 Criminal Investigation of the Year Award: To Game Warden Mark Merrifield and Aspen, for their unwavering diligence in tracking a hunter who had fired a shot into a person’s home.
  • K-9 Search and Rescue of the Year Award: To Game Warden Mark Merrifield and Aspen, for their vigilance in locating and rescuing 73-year-old woman with Alzheimer’s disease who had wandered from her home and was found in the ocean, singing.
  • Special Recognition Award: To the Salvation Army Mobile Response Unit, for its tireless and unselfish commitment to ensuring the well-being of Maine’s game wardens and the families of victims at search-and-rescue and other incident scenes.
  • Maine Warden Service Association Legendary Game Warden: To Alanson "Mickey" Noble, who joined the Maine Warden Service in the early 1950s, and served as chief warden from 1977 until his retirement in 1980.
  • Maine Warden Service Retirement Badge: Deborah Palman, the state’s first female game warden, received a Retirement Badge from Col. Joel Wilkinson. Palman retired two days after the meeting, on Aug. 29, after a 30.5-year career. Palman was instrumental in bringing canines into conservation law enforcement, and also established the Maine Search and Rescue Dogs unit, a volunteer group that assists the Maine Warden Service at search and rescue scenes. Besides initiating the MWS K-9 program, Palman expanded the unit’s duties to include cadaver detection work and air scent “hasty search” work. She served on the Maine Criminal Justice Academy’s K-9 Committee to enhance the overall structure of the training of police K-9s. The day after her retirement, Palman volunteered in the MWS search for a 9-year-old girl in Salem Township.

Also, another award:

Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve: Sgt. Tim Spahr of the Maine Warden Service was presented the group’s 2008 Conservation Award for his long-standing work on stream and river protection.