D. Jeremy DeMar | From Rochester Dispatcher to 911 Thought Leader

D. Jeremy DeMar grew up watching fire trucks roll past the movie theater where he worked, one street over from a firehouse in Webster, New York. Nearly three decades later, he's a nationally recognized 911 futurist who built his career just down the road at Monroe County ECD — the same 911 center that sits about five minutes from Wilmac's own headquarter office in Rochester, NY.In this episode of The Wilmac Wire, hosts Emily McNulty and Steve McDonnell sit down with Jeremy — a Rochester native who spent 15 years at ECD before leading 911 centers in Springfield, Massachusetts and New Jersey, and now a speaker, thought leader, and host of his own podcast, Your911Future. The conversation covers what it was like going from the public to private sector, the important difference between a vendor and an industry partner, and where AI can genuinely help 911 without losing sight of the people doing the job.Here's what you'll hear about:How a high school job next door to a firehouse turned into a career in public safetyWhy he left ECD on a Friday and started a director job in a city he'd never visited by MondayThe real difference between a vendor and an industry partnerHow AI-driven image and sentiment analysis could catch signs of trauma supervisors missThe case for keeping non-emergency calls off telecommunicators' plates entirelyWhat inspired Jeremy to launch his own podcast, Your911FutureEpisode Breakdown: 0:00 Welcome back and introducing Jeremy DeMar 2:38 Full introduction and background 3:36 Icebreaker: This or That 12:32 How a high school fire explorer post started it all 15:40 Working his way up at Monroe County ECD 18:52 Choosing 911 over becoming a career firefighter 22:41 Leaving ECD on a Friday, starting in Springfield on a Monday 30:34 What sitting on the other side of the desk taught him about vendors vs. partners 36:35 The biggest surprise moving from public to private sector 44:46 Why the 911 community is warming up to AI faster than expected 46:12 Human in the loop vs. human on the loop 52:25 Using AI to protect telecommunicator wellness 57:22 The case for keeping non-emergency calls off the floor entirely 1:00:52 Why Jeremy launched Your 911 Future 1:05:24 Getting involved in NENA and APCO standards work 1:06:52 Where to find Jeremy and his podcastConnect with D. Jeremy DeMar on LinkedInListen to more episodes of The Wilmac Wire: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube | iHeart | Riverside