April 17, 2020 —
As we battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, we continue to be on the front lines carrying out our oath to fight crime and serve every Harris County resident. I couldn’t be more proud of our family. Many of us have been knocked down, but we will get back up.
This week our hearts are heavy as we vow to never forget retired HCSO Deputy Hilbert Nunez, 57, who passed away due to COVID-19. He retired in April 2017 after 34 years of service. Our condolences go out to his family. May he rest in peace.
COVID-19 REPORT
As of Friday, 115 employees have tested positive for the virus, with 100 of the positive test results being among those who work in the Harris County Jail. Thankfully, 137 previously quarantined employees – including 11 who previously tested positive for the virus – are now healthy and have returned to duty.
Five of our teammates are currently in the hospital, including Sgt. Raymond Scholwinski. Help us to continue praying for their prompt recovery as they battle the virus.
Seventy-one inmates have tested positive for COVID-19.
Public health and safety are my top priorities. If you have been exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID-19, please stay home and contact your supervisor. You can also call the Public Health Task Force Employee Hotline number at 713-274-3880 or by email at
PHTaskForce@eng.hctx.net
.
COVID-19 testing is now available to all first responders, even those who aren’t experiencing symptoms. Visit
ReadyHarris.org
to register, using the online screening tool.
CARING FOR OUR HCSO FAMILY
Much-needed supplies, such as masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, and disinfecting wipes, are continuing to arrive for distribution to our teammates on a daily basis. If you need supplies, please contact your supervisor so that we can take care of your needs.
In keeping with our 5th core value, our Wellness Unit, as well as our Chaplaincy, are available to assist you. Should you or your family have a physical need for hard-find-supplies, financial assistance, emotional and or spiritual support, please reach out to them.
Lt Shannon Bowdoin 936-776-6537
Don Savell 832-233-4387
Dr. Robert Seals
We have seen adversity before, and I know we will persevere. This is what makes us strong. As always, I am eternally grateful for the great work everyone does. God bless all of you, and God bless the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
Sincerely,
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez
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"A retired Harris County sheriff's deputy has passed away due to coronavirus COVID-19, announced Sheriff Ed Gonzalez on Twitter. "We are sad to learn of the passing of retired Harris County Sheriff's Deputy Hilbert Nunez," Sheriff Gonzalez tweeted."
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“HCSO has an outreach homeless program that is providing homeless people with information on COVID-19, food and hand sanitizer. “We are trying to educate them. They don’t have access to television. They don’t have access to seeing all the things they have going on,” said Deputy Greg Temple.”
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“I would have expected the number to go down more,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said. “But we tend to have a bad driving culture in our region and less traffic doesn’t mean safer drivers are out, sadly. We still see people taking unnecessary trips, and the fact we are still seeing high numbers (of fatalities) is worrisome.”
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“Personas que sientan algún tipo de crisis mental pueden pedir ayuda. Se le ofrecerá consejería a través del internet. La policía es la primera persona que va a responder, casi siempre, a estas llamadas. Y si piensa el policía que necesita esta aplicación para que la persona en crisis hable con alguna consejera, el oficial va a agarrar la tableta, le va a llamar por Facetime, dijo el Oficial Gómez”.
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Do you or your family need assistance?
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In keeping with our 5th core value, our Wellness Unit as well as our Chaplaincy are available to assist you. Should you or your family have a physical need for hard-find-supplies, financial assistance, emotional and or spiritual support, please reach out to us.
We have:
- Hand sanitizer
- Bleach
- Disinfectant spray
- Toilet paper
- Paper towels
- Gloves
Lt. Shannon Bowdoin 936-776-6537
Don Savell 832-233-4387
Dr. Robert Seals
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Child care options for essential Harris County personnel
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Harris County recognizes that with school closures, and the closure of some child care facilities, some families--including Harris County employees--are faced with the challenge of finding child care solutions while still being called upon to provide essential services during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Judge Hidalgo's office has partnered with Collaborative for Children and others to offer a resource to help address this challenge.
The
Child Care Now
registration page is now available to assist essential Harris County personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic. You will be able to register for child care options through this program. As part of the program, applicants may request financial support from the State of Texas, facilitated by Workforce Solutions, to pay for child care services.
For questions, please contact:
The Office of Judge Lina Hidalgo
Additionally, Harris County employees may request child care service provider information from our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) by contacting the Cigna Voluntary EAP directly at 1-855-626-0739.
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Please click on the links below to order COVID-19 supplies
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Please direct any questions or concerns to Detention Sergeant Joseph Carpenter or Lieutenant Darrell Criss.
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Academy class cancellations
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In light of Governor Abbot's extension of the State of Disaster Declaration until May 13
th
, it has been determined that all non-essential Academy classes will be cancelled until May 13
th
. Advanced training, certificate, continuing education and mandated training will resume as soon as it has been determined safe protocol to do so as determined by COVID-19 prevention protocols.
We apologize for any inconvenience.
Please feel free to contact the Academy Staff with any questions.
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Basic Peace Officer's Course physical agility test
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With the new changes to the entrance into the BPOC, the academy staff will be conducting Physical Agility Testing at the front entrance into The Harris County Sheriff's Academy, 2316 Atascocita Road, Humble Texas 77396. We are limiting the testing to a maximum of 10 candidates during a single session. In order for your application to be processed by Human Resources you must successfully pass the Physical Agility Test.
The PAT consist of the following:
• Radio manipulation
• Weapon manipulation (Pistol & Shotgun)
• Push-ups (20 in one (1) minute)
• Sit-ups (45 in two (2) minutes)
• 1.5 mile run (15 minutes and 30 seconds or less)
If, you fail any portion of the test, you will not continue forward for that session. The academy staff will allow you some time to go home and practice. An additional test will be set up on a later date.
You are allowed a maximum of three (3) attempts to pass the physical agility test. You must contact Sergeant Williams through email
charlotte.williams@sheriff.hctx.net
or Deputy Sled at
daniel.sled@sheriff.hctx.net
to schedule a Physical Agility Test. Only the candidates who are scheduled will be allowed to participate in the test. Once you are scheduled for a PAT, it is imperative to attend on your assigned test date and time since the test is limited to 10 candidates.
If you need to cancel or reschedule, please contact Sergeant Williams (713) 274-4923 or Deputy Sled (713) 274-4913. Upon arrival for the PAT, your identification will be checked at the front entrance of the academy building. The testing will start promptly start at 9:30 a.m. or 1 p.m. Please wait at the front entrance and be prepared to be screened prior to testing.
You should be dressed in appropriate fitness attire; no sheer garments, ensure your fitness garment covers your torso and extends to the thighs. Please bring water for hydration. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, you will not be allowed into the academy building for any reason.
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Online training available for HCSO employees
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Harris County Human Resources & Risk Management is working with a new vendor, KnowledgeCity, to meet the current need for online training.
Online training classes will be available to Harris County employees starting, Wednesday, April 1
st
.
Please see the attached course catalog for KnowledgeCity, along with a list detailing the duration of each class.
To get started, please contact your supervisor to request permission. Employees
MUST
be approved by their supervisor to register for the online training courses. Once approval is received, employees can submit an email request to register for online training to
Syrenthia.Bonds@sheriff.hctx.net
(Please CC: supervisor). Thereafter, a link will be sent to for the requesting employee to register for the available training courses online.
***Important***
Employees who are on the following may NOT take the online training courses:
*FMLA
*Using Sick time or Compensation (Comp) time
*Regular Days Off (RDO)
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Free ClassPass Fitness membership for Harris County employees
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Staying active is not only part of your routine – it’s often a critical component of your mental well-being. Enjoy ClassPass’ digital solutions for free and experience your favorite classes on-demand from the comfort of your home
To sign up for free, click
here
.
As a Harris County employee, you have access to a $0, 0 credit plan which gives you over 1,000 audio and video workouts to choose from!
New to ClassPass? So glad you’re giving it a try! You can sign up for a digital only membership via the link and select “Create an Account”. From there, you will be prompted to sign up for this digital plan.
Already have a membership?
Awesome! You can access all of our audio and digital content under the “Videos” tab and on your app home page.
Had a membership in the past?
Welcome back! When you click the link above, please select “Log In”, from there, if you get a pop up, make sure to type:
classpass.com/videos
into your URL.
Your membership is month to month, so you can cancel or switch your plan at any time.
On that note, I’d also like to introduce our Customer Experience team - they can be reached at ClassPass.com/contact. If you have any questions or concerns regarding your membership, they’ll be ready to help.
For additional information, please contact:
Ronisha Mathis
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Upcoming live wellness webinars - HAMP credit available
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Healthy Actions Medical Plan (HAMP) credit will be provided for those in attendance.
All wellness training in person is now canceled through April, so we will continue to have trainings online. Here is a list of our upcoming live webinars for April 2020. These classes are taught by our Cigna Health Coaches Sam and Brandy. Please visit the below links for additional information and registration. These classes do not come with an automated certificate. If a certificate is needed for work credit, please reach out to the wellness inbox (
wellness@bmd.hctx.net
) with the class title and date of completion.
For additional information, please refer to the below link:
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Miss Last Week's Newsletter?
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Newsletter #60 | Together We Will Move Forward
"They go through training how to learn how to approach a vehicle to make a stop, how to answer a door when they're going to a domestic violence call," said Rynda Scholwinski, the wife of Sgt. Scholwinski who is in critical condition. "But you...
Read more
myemail.constantcontact.com
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