On Friday, May 31, 2019, the Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) recognized over 70 of its Explorers at the 14th Annual Explorer Program Awards Banquet at the Hilton San Gabriel.
The evening was enjoyed by family, friends and Department personnel as the Explorers were presented with various awards and scholarships for their dedicated service to the program and community.
“It was a memorable evening acknowledging all of the hard work these young adults have completed this past year,” says LACoFD Assistant Fire Chief Eleni Pappas. “I was honored to be there, handing out scholarships and other awards to those who have put so much effort into improving their lives through learning and leadership.”
Explorers volunteer their time to develop leadership skills and prepare for a career in the field of fire and emergency medical services. The program was co-founded in 1970 with the assistance of retired LACoFD Battalion Chief Ray Hall and Captain John Price.
The Department looks forward to celebrating the 50th anniversary of the program next year!
Congratulations to each award and scholarship recipients:

Photographed from left to right, LACoFD’s Assistant Fire Chief Eleni Pappas, Retired Fire Captain John Price, and Deputy Fire Chief Anthony Marrone.
Post 2
Explorer of the Year:
• Deven Torres
Certificate of Merit:
• Grant Mestas
• Alexis Solano
• Deven Torres
• Joshua Marshman Vargas
• Ryan Vasquez
Post 4
Explorer of the Year:
• Daniel Bozanic
Certificate of Merit:
• Dillon Benacerraf-Gajda
• Clayton Koach
Post 5
Explorer of the Year:
• Horacio Garcia
Certificate of Merit:
• Rachel Coleman
• Shawn Martinez
• Mason Wise
Post 6
Explorer of the Year:
• Brandon Walsh
Certificate of Merit:
• Jack Backes
• Tyler Barnett
• Austin Bennett
• Anthony Caron
• Daniel De La Maza
• Makenna Minniti
Post 8
Explorer of the Year:
• Matthew Vargas
Certificate of Merit:
• Geoffrey Balchowsky
• Noah Balchowsky
• Corey Britt
• Abigail Cortez
• Jacob Papazian
Post 12
Explorer of the Year:
• Alex Toledo
Certificate of Merit:
• Alexis Aguirre
• Eli Aleman
• Jonathan Carlson
• Tyler Kramer
• Tyler Parquette
Post 13
Explorer of the Year:
• Martin Rivera
Certificate of Merit:
• John Lawrence
• Gianni Muñoz
Post 14
Explorer of the Year:
• Kyle Henscheid
Certificate of Merit:
• Albert Covarrubias
• Kyle Ebersole
• Declan O’Brien
Post 15
Explorer of the Year:
• Gerardo Martinez
Certificate of Merit:
• Ryan Castro
• Oscar Echeverria
• Kurt Frescas
• Cole Schiaretti
• Jacob Velazquez
Post 16
Certificate of Merit:
• Ismael Alvarado
• Andres Chavarry
• Joshua Chirino
• Bryce Estrada
• Jonathan Godinez
Post 17
Explorer of the Year:
• Zachary Akin
Certificate of Merit:
• Mathew Smolenski
• Tristen White
Post 18
Explorer of the Year:
• Miles Dorsey
Certificate of Merit:
• Shaun Chisolm
• Jazlyne Dellcide
Post 19
Explorer of the Year:
• Gavin Fung
Certificate of Merit:
• Cristian Meza
Post 21
Explorer of the Year:
• Roman Duarte
Certificate of Merit:
• Aaron Carranza
• Ben Cowan
• Leila Gascon
• Nathan Sean
Post 22
Explorer of the Year:
• Tristan Whallin
Certificate of Merit:
• Eric Bruecher
• Hunter Tubbs
• Scott Mason
Explorer of the Year, East Regional Operations Bureau:
• Deven Torres (Post 2)
Explorer of the Year, Central Regional Operations Bureau:
• Martin Rivera (Post 13)
Explorer of the Year, North Regional Operations Bureau:
• Daniel Bozanic (Post 4)
Overall Explorer of the Year:
• Austin Bennett (Post 6)
Advisor of the Year:
• John Denton (Post 5)
Post of the Year:
• Post 6
James M. Ingraham Scholarship:
• Martin Rivera (Post 13)
Crystal Golden-Jefferson Scholarship:
• Gerardo Martinez (Post 15)
Brother’s Outreach Knights USA Scholarship:
• Zachary Akin (Post 17)
Woyjeck Memorial Scholarship:
• Matthew Vargas (Post 8)
Kevin Woyjeck Explorers for Life Educational Scholarship:
• Gavin Fung (Post 19)
Marrone Explorer Academy Scholarship:
• Anthony Perez (Post 15)
Shawn Bayer CPAT Scholarship:
• David Bozanic (Post 4)
F &A Credit Union Educational Scholarship:
• Nicolas Schiaretti (Post 15)
Explorer Board Scholarship:
• Roman Duarte (Post 21)
Higher Education Scholarship:
• Alan Fonseca (Post 15)