COMMUNITY NEWS BRIEFS
Dispatcher of the year, banjo hall of fame and professionalism award
Nathan “Nate” Estes, a call taker and Marion County Fire Rescue dispatcher, works in the 911 Communications Center at the Marion County Sheriff’s Office in Ocala on April 5, 2024. Estes recently was named the International Academies of Emergency Dispatchers 2026 Dispatcher of the Year. *Disclaimer: This image has been digitally altered to blur sensitive and protected information. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette file photo]
Marion County telecommunicator is dispatcher of the year
Marion County Public Safety Communications emergency telecommunicator Nathan “Nate” Estes has been named the International Academies of Emergency Dispatchers Dispatcher of the Year for 2026.
An IAED press release dated April 22 noted that Estes was honored along with Chris Clark of Baker City, OR, who received the 2026 Dave Massengale Memorial Instructor of the Year Award. The awards are given annually to a North American emergency dispatch instructor and emergency dispatcher who exemplify excellence in his or her work throughout the year and were announced at the opening session of the IAED’s 2026 NAVIGATOR Conference in Las Vegas.
Estes has been with Marion County for seven years and is certified as an emergency medical dispatcher, emergency fire dispatcher and emergency police dispatcher.
“He brings his exceptional professionalism, compassion and mastery of the protocols to the console every single day and can be counted on to stay calm in a crisis,” Marion County Fire Rescue noted in a social media post.
“In a call where a teenage girl was lost in the woods, Nate followed protocol precisely while continuously assessing and reinforcing her safety. Using a steady tone, he kept her focused, praised her for remaining calm and offered constant encouragement. When the caller asked if he had ever been lost, he appropriately shared his own experience, building trust and connection while maintaining control of the call. His ability to balance empathy with protocol ensured the caller remained safe and cooperative until help arrived, proving the power of effective protocol use paired with genuine human connection,” the post stated.
“Nathan is the first ever Dispatcher of the Year award recipient for a call using the Emergency Police Protocols and demonstrated extreme compassion, calm and competence on a call with a 13-year-old girl lost in the forest,” the IAED release stated.
“When I heard the call, the first thing I noticed was how compassionate and kind Nathan was. You could just hear the scared girl calm right down almost immediately,” said Pam Stewart, IAED executive director of operations and board of certification chair, in the release. “He has this massive compassion, and it was just a great call, but this award is never just about the call that is submitted, it’s about the totality of what the nominee does for their agency, their community and the general public.”
Mark Johnson [Photo by Dave Schlenker]
Banjo hall of fame for Dunnellon man
Clawgrass banjo pioneer Mark Johnson of Dunnellon will be inducted into the 2026 American Banjo Museum Hall of Fame in October in Oklahoma City, OK.
A long-time performer and banjo instructor, Johnson is known as the inventor of the clawgrass five-string banjo style, which incorporates Scruggs bluegrass banjo styles and Appalachian clawhammer banjo styles as well as bluegrass guitar styles and ensemble playing techniques.
Johnson was the 2012 recipient of the Steve Martin Prize/Award for Excellence in playing the five-string banjo. In 2007, his album “Acoustic Rising” with international mandolin master and multi-instrumentalist Emory Lester was nominated by the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) for the Instrumental Album of the Year Award at the Grand Old Opry, Nashville, the news release noted.
Johnson is a 30-year spokesman and endorser for the Deering Banjo Co., the largest banjo company in the world, which lists two Mark Johnson Clawgrass model banjos in their Artist Series online catalog.
According to his website, “Johnson has revolutionized the art of playing clawhammer style banjo and advanced the five-string banjo well into uncharted territory by incorporating complex, rhythmic runs and beautiful melodies into his original banjo compositions and variations on traditional music.”
“I am still in a state of shock,” Johnson said of the hall of fame news. “I never saw this coming.”
Judicial professionalism award
The Fifth Judicial Circuit is comprised of Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion and Sumter counties, with main administrative offices in Ocala. During its recent 2026 Professionalism Conference, the circuit honored Rob Davis.
Davis is the general counsel for the Marion County Clerk of Court and Comptroller. He was given the circuit’s Professionalism Award, which was presented by the Honorable Ann Melinda Craggs.
“Thank you for the professionalism you bring to the work you do every day, Mr. Davis,” the circuit noted in a social media post.
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