1 of 21
Photos by Jon Anderson
Hoover 2017 Public Safety Officers of Year
The Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce honored the city of Hoover's 2017 Public Safety Officers of the Year on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018. Top row, from left, are Police Officer of the Year Cedric Acoff and Firefighters of the Year Deramius Leonard and Taylor McAdams. On bottom row, from left, are Paramedic of the Year Barrie Woods, Corrections Officer of the Year Cpl. Drew Neill, Telecommunicator of the Year Terrance Darling and Police Officer of the Year finalist Chad Godsey.
2 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
2017 chamber public safety awards
The Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce presented its 2017 public safety awards on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018, at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama. On the front row, from left, are Paramedic of the Year Barrie Woods, Firefighters of the Year Taylor McAdams and Deramius Leonard and fire Chief Clay Bentley. On the back row from left are chamber President Jerome Morgan Jr., Telecommunicator of the Year Terrance Darling, Police Officer of the Year Cedric Acoff, police Chief Nick Derzis, Corrections Officer of the Year Drew Neill, Police Officer of the Year finalist Chad Godsey and Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato.
3 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
2017 chamber police awards
The Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce presented its 2017 public safety awards on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018, at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama. From left are Hoover chamber President Jerome Morgan Jr., Telecommunicator of the Year Terrance Darling, Police Officer of the Year Cedric Acoff, police Chief Nick Derzis, Corrections Officer of the Year Drew Neill, Police Officer of the Year finalist Chad Godsey and Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato.
4 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Terrance Darling Nick Derzis 2-15-18
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis, at right, presents Terrance Darling with the 2017 Telecommunicator of the Year award at the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
5 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Terrance Darling 2-15-18 (2)
Terrance Darling is the 2017 Telecommunicator of the Year for the Hoover Police Department in Hoover, Alabama.
6 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Nick Derzis 2-15-18
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis speaks to the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce during its luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Feb. 15, 2018.
7 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Drew Neill Nick Derzis 2-15-18
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis, at right, presents Drew Neill with the 2017 Corrections Officer of the Year award at the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
8 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Chad Godsey Nick Derzis 2-15-18
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis, at left, poses for a photo with Chad Godsey, who was a finalist for the 2017 Police Officer of the Year award, during the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
9 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Chad Godsey 2-15-18 (2)
Chad Godsey was a finalist for the Hoover Police Department's 2017 Police Officer of the Year award.
10 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Cedric Acoff Nick Derzis 2-15-18
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis, at left, poses for a photo with Cedric Acoff, the 2017 Police Officer of the Year, during the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
11 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Cedric Acoff 2-15-18 (2)
Cedric Acoff is the 2017 Police Officer of the Year for the Hoover Police Department in Hoover, Alabama.
12 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Acoff Godsey Derzis 2-15-18
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis, at left, prepares to present the 2017 Police Officer of the Year award to Cedric Acoff, center, during the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018. At right is Chad Godsey, who also was a finalist for the award.
13 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Cedric Acoff 2-15-18 (2)
Cedric Acoff is the 2017 Police Officer of the Year for the Hoover Police Department in Hoover, Alabama.
14 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Taylor McAdams 2-15-18
Taylor McAdams is one of two Firefighters of the Year for the Hoover Fire Department in Hoover, Alabama.
15 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
McAdams Leonard Bentley 2-15-18
Hoover fire Chief Clay Bentley, at right, presents the 2017 Firefighter of the Year awards to Taylor McAdams, at left, and Deramius Leonard during the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
16 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Deramius Leonard 2-15-18 (2)
Deramius Leonard is one of two 2017 Firefighters of the Year for the Hoover Fire Department in Hoover, Alabama.
17 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Clay Bentley 2-15-18
Hoover fire Chief Clay Bentley prepares to present the 2017 Hoover Firefighter of the Year and Hoover Paramedic of the Year awards during the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
18 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Barrie Woods 2-15-18
Barrie Woods, the 2017 Paramedic of the Year for the Hoover Fire Department, listens as fire Chief Clay Bentley presents him the award during the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama.
19 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
Barrie Woods 2-15-18 (2)
Barrie Woods is the 2017 Paramedic of the Year for the Hoover Fire Department in Hoover, Alabama.
20 of 21
Photo by Jon Anderson
April Stone Bill Powell 2-15-18
April Stone, the incoming executive director for the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce, speaks to the chamber during its luncheon at the Hoover Country Club in Hoover, Alabama, on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018, as outgoing Executive Director Bill Powell listens.
21 of 21
Jon Anderson
Bill Powell April Stone 2-15-18
Bill Powell, the outgoing executive director of the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce in Hoover, Alabama, passes the gavel to new Executive Director April Stone during the chamber's luncheon at the Hoover Country Club on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018.
The work of police officers and firefighters is not always about arresting criminals and putting out fires. Sometimes it means rescuing a depressed man about to jump off a bridge onto Interstate 459.
That’s exactly what Hoover police officer Cedric Acoff and firefighters Deramius Leonard and Taylor McAdams did on Sept. 16 of last year, helping earn them the honors of Hoover police officer and firefighters of the year.
Acoff, Leonard and McAdams were among seven public safety workers recognized today for outstanding contributions in 2017 at the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hoover Country Club.
Acoff was one of the first police officers on the scene in September when callers reported a man climbing over the fence on the Lorna Road bridge over I-459 and preparing to end his life by jumping, Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis said.
Acoff started talking with the man, who said that he had too much going on in his life that he couldn’t handle and that he needed to end his life to end the pain, Derzis told the chamber crowd. The man was standing on the concrete ledge on the other side of the fence, and as he leaned back and began to loosen his grip on the fence to jump, Acoff quickly reached through the fence and grabbed onto the man’s clothing, preventing him from jumping, the chief said.
Leonard and Taylor then quickly cut a hole in the fencing on the bridge, wrapped a belt around him and brought him to safety, fire Chief Clay Bentley said.
“If these two gentlemen, with the aid of the police officers and other members of the Fire Department, had not been there that day, this situation would have not turned out as well it did,” Bentley said.
Just three days after the bridge incident, Acoff also was recognized for helping catch a burglar who had broken into the home of two elderly people at 6:30 in the morning, Derzis said. The couple awoke to find the burglar shining a flashlight around their bedroom. He fled, and Acoff spotted him walking between houses and chased him on foot, Derzis said.
Acoff sent directions to other officers via his radio, and they were able to take the suspect, who had a semi-automatic pistol on him, into custody. The follow-up investigation led to charges related to burglaries of homes and cars in other Hoover neighborhoods and cities in Georgia, Derzis said. The suspect had a history with more than 50 criminal charges, he said.
“The alert and courageous response by Acoff led to the capture of a dangerous career criminal and ended a severe threat to the safety of Hoover residents and hopefully put this guy back where he belongs for the rest of his life,” Derzis said. “His actions in September of 2017 exemplified the Hoover Police Department’s commitment to serve and protect the citizens of our city with honor, pride and dignity.”
The chamber also honored:
- Barrie Woods as Paramedic of the Year, for quickly beginning resuscitation efforts on a woman who wrecked on U.S. 280 near Alabama 119 after having a cardiac arrest while driving in August.
- Cpl. Drew Neill as Corrections Officer of the Year, for discovering a razor blade that a jail inmate had swiped and hidden in his cell in August.
- Terrance Darling as Telecommunicator of the Year, for quick and exceptional performance in dispatching information to officers to catch a burglar in September.
- Detective Chad Godsey as a finalist for Police Officer of the Year, for his investigation into a child molestation case that resulted in a 38-year-old father being convicted of four counts of rape, four counts of sodomy and a drug charge.