DANVILLE — For a Navy man and former police radio operator, three numbers describe the work he has put in for Vermilion County: 9-1-1.
Vic Vanesse, director of the 911 Communications Center, is making the decision to leave his post. He is retiring after more than 30 years of making sure residents could reach emergency personnel and those personnel knew where to help residents.
Unlike many longtime employees who have trouble picking out a highlight of their career, Vanesse has no problems pointing to his — Vermilion County’s institution of the current 911 system.
“I feel very proud of that and it’s quite a monumental move,” he said. “We went all the way from the basic 911 with the basic three-digit number to Phase 2 wireless, which is where you get the name and address and spot a call on the map within a reason-able distance.
“I take pride that it’s working.”
Vanesse has been involved in communications in one form or another for a number of years. He started out as a radio operator in the U.S. Navy. He then worked almost a decade for the Illinois State Police as a radio technician and dispatcher.
He applied for his current post in 1976 and got the job, concentrating the next 33 years of his life on initiating and evolving the 911 system.
Vanesse, who turns 70 later this fall, said he looks at the history of the 911 system in stages. Now, with his retirement, he’s entering a new stage of his own.
“We’ve got the communication center up, everything’s running very well; the equipment’s running good,” he said. “I feel like ‘OK, I’ve done all that I can do.’ It’s time to enjoy some gardening, traveling, some other stuff.”
The 911 system in Vermilion County began with the city and county officers being dispatched out of the newly built Public Safety Building in 1976. Calls were printed on cards and handed from console to console for record keeping at that time, but quickly technology took over.
The Danville Fire Department and several fire protection districts were added to the mix just two years later and, in 1980, the first computer-aided system was brought in. A county referendum began the implementation of the Enhanced 911 system in 1990 and in 2004 the wireless Phase 2 system was enabled.
Vanesse has watched the number of dispatchers and the overall system grow year after year. But on Monday — the first workday he won’t head in to the Public Safety Building — he’s convinced he won’t miss it.
“As far as missing it, I’ll miss the folks. But the other things, I will be very relieved that I don’t have those problems that may arise and the ongoing pressures you have.
“Although I know in my heart there will be a great fondness forever, I feel that I have given my 33 years. I’ll let somebody run it the way they want to run it.”
Local News
Related Photos
-
Matt Huber/Commercial-News
Discussion
Director proud of emergency system
- Local News
-
-
Spirit of the West
Museum workers run out of adjectives when describing the “Spirit of the West” quilt exhibit, which opens Friday. “It’s mind boggling,” Sue Richer, director of the Vermilion County Museum, said as she admired the quilts. “It amazes me. They’re works of art, the way they’re put together.”
-
County looks at power deal
Vermilion County Board committee members will discuss a contract letting Integrys extend electric savings to residents now.
-
Six to retire from Danville High
Six longtime District 118 employees said goodbye to Danville High School at the end of the school year.
-
Teacher’s aide retires after 33 years
Jan Kovacic meets the students at Covington Elementary School when they arrive in the morning, and she is the last one they see in the afternoon when getting on a bus or in a car.
-
Fountain OKs nurse position
Fountain County Council members approved restructuring changes Tuesday in the Fountain-Warren Health Department.
-
United Way close to goal
The United Way of Danville Area is in the home stretch of its annual campaign and wants residents’ help in reaching that goal.
- City rummage sale nears
- Home tour helps museum
- Police, Fire Reports
-
Teacher weaves life skills in with lessons
KaSandra Mitchell’s fifth-graders probably think all the cooking and sewing they do in class is a lot of fun.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Sister Says She Reported Brother in Patz Killing
Patz Suspect's Sister: I Went to Police in 1980s
Diplomatic Expulsions Follow Fresh Syria Report
15 Dead in Northern Italy's 5.8-magnitude Quake
Angry Birds Spreading Their Wings
Witness Describes Fla. Face-chewing Attack
Man Falls Off Crane, Dies After Police Standoff
Russia Condemns Ally Syria Over Massacre of 108
Dairy Farm Uses Chiropractor to Help Cows
Unexpected Smog in Pristine National Parks
Air Canada Plane Makes Emergency Landing
New Ticks Spread Across Southeast, Diseases Rise
Bring Your Own Tech Programs Charge Up Students
Pope's Butler Vows to Help Vatican Investigation
Mother of Allegedly Abused Girl Denies Claims
Raw Video: 19 Dead in Qatar Shopping Mall Fire
Service Dogs Help Wash. Soldiers Battling PTSD
Raw Video: Heckler Bursts in on Blair Testimony
Japan Farmers Plant, Seek Radiation-free Rice
Couple doesn’t let tropical storm ruin their big day
Tori Bares Baby Bump in Monokini
Even Fla. Police Shocked by Face-Mauling Attack
Letterman on Family Life Post-Scandal
Evans: Serena in shock
Pregnant Reese Wears LBD
Volcano covers Colombian cities in ash
Meet the Crew and Good Ship 'Prometheus'
Los Angeles Bar Bans Bachelorettes
Hamster Plays Dead
Beyonce Shows Off 60 Pound Weight Loss at Concert
Drunk Women Breaking Into Houses: A New Trend?
LeAnn Rimes Rocks Short Shorts
Raw Video: Cop Shoots Man Eating Another's Face
Gordon Ramsay Carried Off Field
Man Dies Getting Lap Dance
Kim Kardashian Claims Items Stolen from Her Luggage
Bear cools off in Calif. family's pool
Ep. 3: Chopped Desserts
Air Force dad surprises family at baseball game
