Leo Charles Lachat

Background

About Leo Charles Lachat

STATE OF FLORIDA: 32 years (1987-2019) of professional work in Public Administration. Emergency Management was my career focus and my earlier work experience with the Florida Legislature and the Office of the Governor significantly contributed to my knowledge of the entire State and gave me unique perspectives to apply later during emergency and disaster operations. If an emergency, disaster, or large-scale exercise event occurred between 1995 to 2019 in the State of Florida, I was either deployed to it or responding to it from the SEOC. I joined FDEM at a point of great change following Hurricane Andrew - leadership, new facility, operational approaches, organization, plans, equipment, ESF structures, EMAC - and we collectively developed an outstanding team (SERT) of professionals that would serve the State of Florida and the Nation with excellence through upcoming decades of historic challenges. I retired on January 1, 2019 very proud of that entire team, what they had accomplished, and honored to have been a part of its leadership - notably in roles throughout as the Chief of Operations, SERT Chief, Governor's Authorized Representative, Deputy State Coordinating Officer, and Deputy Director. US MARINE CORPS: 23 years (1974-1997) of service on active and reserve duty. serving initially in the enlisted ranks immediately after high school graduation led to my goal of earning a college degree and a commission as an Officer of Marines. I am proud to be among the relatively few to have served as both a Sergeant of Marines and a Major of Marines - a "Mustang" career path. I had an interesting career as a Marine and the privilege of associating with some of the most dedicated Americans I will know in my lifetime. Among my service in the Marines were expeditionary operations (Lebanon and the Persian Gulf War), JLOTS operations, typhoon preparedness and response duties in WESTPAC, two mass casualty response operations, and service as the Commanding Officer of a Marine Detachment deployed for Hurricane Andrew response under DSCA. All of that became important connecting experience for my later work with EM in Florida. POST-RETIREMENT: 2019 to present. consulting and advisory roles. selective university and private sector projects have been rewarding and interesting tying experience, knowledge, lessons learned, new friendships, and new ideas together.