Williamson County Emergency Services Director Sneed Retiring

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TX — John Sneed, senior director of Emergency Services for Williamson County, is poised to retire this month after more than 36 years of service, officials said in a press release.

Member of the Williamson County Commissioners Court recently approved a resolution honoring Sneed for his leadership and long years of dedicated service to residents in a storied career. He started working for the county on Oct. 1, 1981, as a field paramedic at a time when there were just four ambulance stations in the county — compared to 18 today.

After a dozen years with the county, he was named director of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in 1993. From 1994 to 2008, Mr. Sneed took on the dual role of filling the duties of a county emergency management coordinator.

On May 27, 1997, Sneed coordinated the emergency response to the Jarrell F5 tornado that killed 27 people, on the same day a second tornado hit the western part of the county. An F3 tornado did severe damage in Cedar Park with only one indirect casualty, but it tested the capabilities of the county’s EMS and Emergency Communications systems to support separate crises, officils noted.

In 1998, he was named Emergency Management Coordinator of the Year. Ten years later, he was tapped to take on a newly created position as senior director of Emergency Services. In this position, he oversaw all emergency service departments which eventually came to include EMS, Emergency Management, Emergency Communications, Hazmat, Mobile Outreach Team, Wireless Communications and the newly created Fire Marshal Office.

"When the county decided to compile similar departments under a senior director, there was no other choice but John Sneed for senior director of Emergency Services,” County Judge Dan A. Gattis said in a prepared statement. “John’s professionalism, expectation of excellence in customer service, and the respect he received from all of the agencies he worked with made him the right choice for the job.”

Officials said all of Central Texas has benefitted from Mr. Sneed’s leadership and desire to help others. He is a founding member of the Capital Area Trauma Regional Advisory County (CATRAC) mandated to reduce the incidence of trauma, acute illness, and injury through education, data collection/analysis, disaster preparedness, and performance improvement for the 11-county region. He was the chair of that organization for 16 years. He also was chair of the Austin Community College Paramedic Education Board for 16 years.

In addition, Sneed was involved in the implementation of the Capital Area Shelter Hub Plan, which was crucial during evacuations from hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Gustav, Ike, and Harvey. He was given the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 from the 100 Club of Central Texas, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization devoted to providing immediate financial and emotional assistance to the families of first responders who have been killed or critically injured in the line of duty.

“It’s been a wonderful opportunity to serve the residents and guests of Williamson County for the past 36 years,” Sneed said. “I have seen the county through tremendous growth and changes. Although there is always more you want to see accomplished, now is the time for me to pass the torch. I have missed out on a lot of family time due to the demands of being on-call, so now I plan to enjoy my time with my family."

>>> Photo courtesy of Williamson County