It can be really hard to keep a secret. It can be even harder to keep a secret in an industry as tight-knit as the security industry. Still, the National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA), Dallas, managed to keep the recipients of the Morris F. Weinstock and Sara E. Jackson awards a secret until tonight’s NBFAA Weinstock and Jackson Awards Reception held at ESX in Baltimore, Md. Both recipients had no idea they had won until the names were announced.

Rick Simpson, vice president of Vector Security and committee chair for the NBFAA Standards Committee, was definitely surprised when his name was announced as the winner of the Sara E. Jackson award, which honors the memory of 1950-51 NBFAA President Sara E. Jackson by recognizing the NBFAA committee chair who displays outstanding leadership. Not only did he find out that he had won the award, but his wife, Amy, had sent off photos to the NBFAA for the awards presentation slide show and also coordinated travel so that his mother, sister and nephew could attend the event.

 

“I’m humbled by this award,” Simpson said. “It was definitely unexpected and a complete surprise. It is an honor to serve in the alarm industry and tackle the unique challenges that it presents every day.”

 

Ralph Sevinor, founder and president of Wayne Alarm Systems, Lynn, Mass., was just as surprised when he was announced as the winner of the Morris F. Weinstock award, which was first presented in 1970 after being initiated by the family of Morris F. Weinstock to honor the lifetime work of the NBFAA co-founder and past president. In fact, later Sevinor joked that everyone should know he didn’t know he was going to win because if he had known he was going to win he wouldn’t have attended.

 

“This award is fantastic for the industry,” Sevinor said. “Our job is to be the stewards of our profession and work to make it continually better for all. The security industry is a family, and it is a great family to be in.”

 

Michael Stainbrook, a senior at St. Joseph’s Jesuit High School, Toledo, Ohio, and his parents were special guests of the NBFAA at the event. Stainbrook was presented with a check for $10,000 as the national winner of the association’s Youth Scholarship Program, which was founded in 1996 to promote goodwill among the electronic systems industry and police and fire officials by providing college scholarship awards to their deserving sons or daughters. The scoring for the youth scholarship program is based on academic achievement, test scores, community activity and an essay titled, “What it means to ME to have my parent or guardian involved in securing our community.”

 

Stainbrook’s father is a Toledo, Ohio firefighter, and according to Stainbrook, it is a blessing to watch his father serve the community daily. Stainbrook will attend Loyola University, Chicago, Ill., this fall.

 

Ron and Beth Cain were also honored at the event with lifetime membership in the NBFAA following a unanimous vote by the NBFAA to honor their “excellent and meritorious service to the industry.”

 

For additional information on the awards, visit www.esxweb.com/page.cfm/link=69 or www.alarm.org.