Lila Gillespie, FDIC exhibit account manager, received the Joe Fishelson Award at Friday’s General Session. The Award acknowledges individuals who have had a long-term impact on the fire protection industry through customer service.
Gillespie has been a beacon on the Indianapolis FDIC exhibit floors since 1996, when Fire Engineering/PennWell sponsored its first FDIC. She had been working on behalf of the industry long before that. As owner/president of ElectroSonics, she exhibited at 14 industry shows a year. Her company provided communications services at industry shows/conventions for organizations such as the New York State Fire Chiefs and the International Association of Fire Chiefs, and for the Pennsylvania Fire Expos (Lancaster and Harrisburg), and Firehouse Expo.
In addition, she was a member of virtually all exhibitor advisory boards, particularly the IAFC and New York Fire Chiefs, and served as secretary to FEMSA. For eight years, she worked with Mary Grilliett and Kit Cafaro to reorganize the FEMSA organization.
“If you look at past recipients of the award, and specifically at Lila Gillespie’s career, you will see people who have devoted their entire career to supporting the fire service and, either by choice, birth, or some other reason, bring that support through excellence in customer service,” explains Sam Goldwater, chair of the Joe Fishelson Award Board of Directors and a previous recipient of the award.
As appreciative as Lila is of the award, she also finds it somewhat humbling. “Many other people are more deserving of this award than I,” she says. “I am accepting an award for something I love to do.”
