Chief Gene Saunders is, the Founder/CEO & Chief Director General of Lifesaver International based out of Port St. Lucie, Florida, will be inducted into the exclusive Hall of Fame by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP). His expertise and extraordinary talents have afforded him this distinction.
Inclusion with the International Association of Top Professionals is an honor. Only ten IAOTP members are inducted into the exclusive Hall of Fame. These special honorees are distinguished based on their longevity in their fields, contributions to society, and impact on their industries. This December, Chief Gene Saunders will be inducted into the exclusive Hall of Fame at IAOTP's 2022 Annual Awards Gala at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. www.iaotp.com/award-gala. Chief Saunders was recently selected for the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award given by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP).
Chief Gene Saunders has received this honor for his service and dedication of more than four decades of his life's work as a proficient Officer of Law. He is a dynamic, results-driven leader who has excelled in every position he has ever had the honor of serving. Chief Saunders founded Project Lifesaver International in 1999. He has overseen its growth with more than 1,600 public safety organizations in 50 states, 6 Provinces in Canada, and one agency in Australia.
Project Lifesaver is a 501 (C)(3) non-profit community-based public safety organization. This program assists law enforcement, fire/rescue, and caregivers in protecting and, when necessary, quickly locating individuals with cognitive disorders who are prone to the life-threatening behavior of wandering.
Project Lifesaver's program has helped provide thousands of families with peace of mind knowing that their loved ones have protection and safety in case they wander. To date, close to 4,000 people have been rescued through Project Lifesaver.
Chief Saunder's impressive repertoire of prior roles includes his 33 years of service with the Chesapeake Police Department serving in Patrol, Vice, Narcotics, Detectives, and Training. He served inline function and command elements of each of these units. Chief Saunders co-founded the Special Weapons and Tactics team in 1974, serving as tactical commander and commander for 23 years with over 800 operations.
Additionally, he was Chief Investigator on several significant multi-state, international drug, and organized crime conspiracy investigations, and served as Shift Commander, Olympic Security Team, Soccer venue, Olympics, Atlanta, Georgia 1996. Upon his retirement in 2001 as a Captain, he served in the National Guard and State Defense Force in Infantry, Airborne, and Ranger Units in leadership and command positions.
Moreover, Chief Saunders was in the US Air Force Aux. (Civil Air Patrol) as a Senior Squadron (Ranger) commander and five years as Commandant of the Middle East Region Staff College. Equally, he is a Certified instructor in Pursuit Driving, Firearms, Special Operations, Raid Planning, General Law Enforcement, and Search and Rescue. Also, Chief Saunders has functioned as a Helicopter Flight Officer, as a volunteer, with the Virginia Beach Police Department, and did several years of skydiving.
His remarkable skills and specialties include but are not limited to: Search and Rescue, Training, Interrogation, Public Speaking, Firearms, Driving, Special Operations, Investigations, Non-Profits, Crime Prevention, Preparedness, Command, Electronic Search and Rescue, Intelligence, Program Management, Expert Witness, Community Policing, Team Building, Supervisory Skills, First Responder, SWAT, Leadership, Crisis Management, Surveillance, Emergency Services, Private Investigations, Project Planning, Homeland Security, Disaster Response, Criminal Justice, Patrol, Security Operations and Personal Protection.
Chief Saunders has received honors and accolades and has been recognized globally for his expertise during his successful career; he is well regarded as the "Father of Radio-Tracking Recovery of Persons at Risk." He was named Top CEO of the Year for the year 2021. This year, he will be interviewed for an exclusive interview with the International Association of Top Professionals on TIP Radio (IAOTP).
Chief Saunders graced the front cover of TIP (Top Industry Professionals) Magazine and was featured on the famous Reuters Billboard in Times Square NYC. He will receive his Lifetime Achievement Award and will be inducted into The Hall of Fame at the IAOTP's 2022 Annual Awards Gala, which takes place this December at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, NV.
Furthermore, Chief Saunders has received three Commendation Medals and the Chief's Leadership Award from the Chesapeake Police Department, three Line of Duty Injury Medals, and three Silver Stars for Valor from the American Police Hall of Fame for three distinct occurrences. He also received a Presidential Commendation from President Bill Clinton for his SWAT service, the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation's "Service Before Self" Citizens Honor Award, and was named Treasure Coast Non-Profit Leader of the Year in 2019.
Along with these honors, he was given the Bank of America Local Hero Award, was recognized as a Person of Distinction by the Al Cole Radio Show, the William Shatner TV Show's Moving America Forward Award, and the Pilot International-Virginia District's Hero Award. Chief Saunders is actively involved in 11 different respected organizations as his career progresses.
Aside from his successful job, Chief Saunders is a sought-after lecturer and the author of various essays about traveling for periodicals. He has been on a variety of local, national, and international radio and television shows, including CBS's The Early Show, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, Living the Life, Fox News, The Discovery Channel, CNN News, The Daily Buzz, and William Shatner's "Moving America Forward." Chief Saunders has also appeared in the following TV shows as a main or supporting actor; The Prosecutors, The FBI Files, The New Detectives, and The Untold Stories of the Navy SEALS.
Chief Saunders credits his accomplishment to effort, education, ingenuity, and patience. He enjoys spending time with his family and traveling when he is not working. Chief Saunders will continue his objective of "Bringing Loved Ones Home" in the future.
For more information on Chief Saunders please visit: www.projectlifesaver.org
Watch his video biography here: https://youtu.be/JuoulMeAYAM
About IAOTP
The International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) is an international boutique networking organization who handpicks the world’s finest, most prestigious top professionals from different industries. These top professionals are given an opportunity to collaborate, share their ideas, be keynote speakers and to help influence others in their fields. This organization is not a membership that anyone can join. You have to be asked by the President or be nominated by a distinguished honorary member after a brief interview.
IAOTP's experts have given thousands of top prestigious professionals around the world, the recognition and credibility that they deserve and have helped in building their branding empires. IAOTP prides itself to be a one-of-a-kind boutique networking organization that hand picks only the best of the best and creates a networking platform that connects and brings these top professionals together.
For More Information on IAOTP please visit: www.iaotp.com
