Chief Officers
The North Naples Fire Control & Rescue District is extremely lucky to have a professional, qualified and capable management team of Chief Officers to oversee the District's operations. The Chief Officer team consists of one Fire Chief, two Assistant Chiefs and three Deputy Chiefs. Read on to find out about each Chief Officer.
Fire Chief Orly Stolts
Fire Chief Orly Stolts joined North Naples Fire Control & Rescue District in May 1990, bringing more than eighteen years of fire and law enforcement experience to his position as firefighter.
Chief Stolts rose through the ranks from firefighter to District Training Officer, Deputy Chief of Operations, Assistant Chief of Emergency Operations and finally appointed to Fire Chief in September of 2009. He has been an EMT since 1980 and was instrumental in creating the hazardous material, technical rescue and other specialized teams in the District.
As Chief of the District, he is responsible for overseeing all divisions, including operations, medical, prevention, training, support services, public education and administration. He has the ultimate responsibility for the safety of all one hundred fifty-one full time employees, including one hundred forty certified firefighters. Fifty-six of these firefighters are paramedics and seventy-nine are emergency medical technicians.
Finally, Chief Stolts carries the responsibility of representing the District to the community and furthering the mission of life safety and property protection by ensuring the District effectively and efficiently meets the needs of the community.
Assistant Chief Becky Pogan Bronsdon
Chief Bronsdon joined the District in 2001, bringing more than twenty years of accounting and administrative service to her position as Controller. Promoted to the position of Director of Finance, then Chief Financial Officer, Becky attended the North Naples Fire Training Center in 2007 and became a Florida State Certified Firefighter.
In 2007, she was promoted to Assistant Chief of Administrative Services. Becky is responsible for the financial and administrative divisions of the District, and was instrumental in effecting the District's superior audit performance of the last few years. Becky is a Certified District Manager, attended Scripps College, Claremont, California and the University of California, Irvine, and has earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from Columbia Southern University and is currently working a Master's Degree in Public Administration.
Assistant Chief James Cunningham
James Cunningham is the Assistant Chief of Emergency Operations and Training for the North Naples Fire Control and Rescue District. He has been associated with the fire service since 1987 starting as a fire explorer in the Spencerport Volunteer Fire Department, N.Y. He was hired as a professional Fire Fighter in 1997 and has worked through the ranks of Engineer, Lieutenant and Captain to his current position.
As Assistant Chief he oversees the fire training division, Emergency Medical Services Division, Operations Division, Special Operations Division and Public Education. His role also includes active participation in creation and implementation of the operational budget, labor relations, negotiation and disciplinary processes.
Chief Cunningham is an adjunct instructor for the Fire Science program at Edison College and holds Associates degrees in Criminal Justice and Fire Science. He is currently completing his Bachelors Degree in Public Service Management expected in 2010 from Florida Gulf Coast University. Chief Cunningham has been the recipient of many awards and commendations over the course of his public service career in Law Enforcement and Fire Service which include the Naples Area Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Public Service award in 2007.
Deputy Chief Michael Swanson
Chief Swanson has been with the District since 1991. He began his career as a firefighter and worked his way up through the ranks to his present position as Deputy Chief Operations and Safety.
Currently Chief Swanson manages and directs the Districts Operations Division by working with the shift Battalion Chiefs and EMS Coordinator. He also continues to enhance and design the districts training program by being one of the Districts lead instructors. Currently, he also holds a Fire Officer II and Instructor III certificate through the State of Florida. On the national and international level, he is certified as a Dive Rescue International SCBA Instructor, International Association of Firefighters Hazmat Instructor, and FEMA Incident Command Instructor and a lead instructor for the Florida Forestry Service.
Chief Swanson has earned several degrees including a Fire Science Degree from Edison State College and a Bachelor Degree in Business from Hodges University. He is also nationally certified in Wildland Fire and is an Emergency Medical Technician.
Many Florida State Fire College classes are offered at the North Naples Fire Control and Rescue District through both the Fire College itself and Edison State College, many of which are taught by Chief Swanson.
Chief Swanson can be reached at 254-3174 or via email .
Deputy Chief Jorge Aguilera
Jorge Aguilera is the Deputy Chief of Medical Services and Community Relations for the North Naples Fire Control & Rescue District.
Since 1985 he has been involved in the profession of delivering Emergency Medical Services starting with Collier County Emergency Medical Services as a paramedic, Lt. Paramedic, Flight Medic and the Division Chief of Training, presently as stated above he is the Deputy Chief of Medical Services and Community relations with the North Naples Fire Control & Rescue Department.
In his current role he is responsible for the development and implementation of the District emergency medical service program, include training, quality assurance and ensuring compliance with all local, state and federal guidelines. Consequently, he is also responsible for the district's public relations office, which coordinates the all District related press release, press conferences and the coordination of the District's Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and he is also the Director of the North Naples Edison State College Fire Training Center.
Chief Aguilera also earned an Associate in Science Degree in Emergency Medical Technology and a Bachelors Degree in Business Management.
Deputy Chief Sal D'Angelo
Chief D'Angelo joined the District in November 2003 as a Fire Inspector. Since this time, he has promoted to Lieutenant Inspector, and now Deputy Chief of Life Safety. Chief D'Angelo reports directly to the Fire Chief as Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) and oversees the Districts Fire Prevention Division. Prior to joining the District, he served in the capacity of a Firefighter/EMT for eight years, and held management positions within the City of Cape Coral's Finance and Human Resources Departments. Currently, Chief D'Angelo also oversees the maintenance and repair of all the District's facilities and support services.
Chief D'Angelo holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from Florida International University, a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Florida Gulf Coast University, and is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Public Administration from Florida Atlantic University.