Following the appointment of Mark Light as executive director, the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) recently named two additions to its senior leadership team. Effective this month, Mary Beth Michos and Nancy Weaver will serve as deputy executive directors.
Michos leads a 450-person career department, which works with 12 volunteer companies within Prince William County, Va., as a combination fire-EMS system. She started her career as a critical care nurse and spent 21 years with the Montgomery County (Md.) Department of Fire and Rescue Services before taking the chief position with Prince William County.
Michos has been actively involved with the IAFC since 1984, and serves as a member of the IAFC’s EMS Section and the Metro Chiefs Section, as well as a member of the Program Planning and Hazardous Materials committees. “I thought when I retired I would like to work on projects for the IAFC; I just never thought I’d be retiring this soon!” Michos says. “But this opportunity was too good to pass up. I realize how much my participation in the IAFC has helped me grow and develop. This position is an opportunity to give back; I feel that I can have an impact on a much higher plateau.”
Weaver has been serving as the executive assistant and director of executive operations at the IAFC for the past 5 years. Her diverse experience includes foreign counterintelligence investigations with the FBI and work on the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations. “My career with the IAFC began in 2002, when the memories of the horrible tragedies that occurred on 9/11 were still very vivid in my mind,” Weaver says. “I had so much admiration for the dedication and selflessness of the first responders who answered the call of duty that day, and I was excited to have the opportunity to work for an organization that supports fire chiefs.”
Although the two leaders come from different backgrounds, they share a passion for the IAFC and its mission. “The benefit of the IAFC is that it can take the voices of its 13,000-plus membership, and form it into one larger, more powerful voice,” Michos says. “Because of the IAFC, state and local and federal governments are now more aware of how important we are to the wellbeing of this country.” Weaver stresses the benefit of the IAFC’s efforts on Capitol Hill. “IAFC members have worked hard to accomplish legislative changes to move the fire service forward,” she says. “The federal government has awarded the IAFC with many lucrative grants to grow our programs in support of the fire service.”
That growth is not without challenges, she adds: “As our nation continues to face the challenges of terrorist activities, natural disasters, etc., the roles of the fire service will continue to grow to meet the needs of our communities.” Those changes are happening at a rapid pace, Michos notes: “One of our big challenges is technology. Things are happening so fast. We have to be right up on what’s happening in Washington and get that information out to our membership so they can prepare and respond.”
So what do these two leaders hope to achieve in their new positions? “I’ve learned so much from being a member of the IAFC,” Michos says. “I want to do what I can to help other chiefs attain success in their careers.” As Weaver notes, achieving that goal relies on the IAFC staff: “My primary goal is to support the outstanding IAFC staff in their efforts to provide extraordinary customer service to the fire service. I want to make sure the staff has the best tools, education and leadership.”
