Submitted By: Fazillete Gonzalez
Department: City Manager's Office
STAFF RECOMMENDATION (Motion Ready):
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On behalf of HCA Florida Ocala Hospital, Mayor Marciano’s recognition of City of Ocala staff and a Florida Highway Patrol Officer
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OCALA’S RELEVANT STRATEGIC GOALS:
Quality of Place
On behalf of HCA Florida Ocala Hospital, Mayor Marciano would like to recognize and commend the following City of Ocala employees and a Florida Highway Patrol Officer for their courageous and heroic actions on October 28, 2025, which directly resulted in the preservation of an individual’s life.
On October 28, 2025, an elderly man collapsed in front of Tony’s Sushi. A City Utilities crew witnessed the incident and called 911. An Ocala Police Officer arrived first, performed CPR and utilized an automated external defibrillator. Ocala Fire Rescue then arrived and continued lifesaving measures until the Marion County Fire Rescue paramedics transported the patient to the hospital. The patient was discharged on November 6th, 2025, after making a full recovery.
City of Ocala staff to be recognized:
Firefighter/Paramedic, Ross Gauthier
Firefighter/EMT, John Pohl
Captain/Paramedic, Joe Talley
FEO/Paramedic, Jerry Tafoya
Firefighter/EMT, Ryan Toms
Ocala Police Detective Evan Thomas
Ocala Electric Utility, Senior Meter Technician, Mitchell McCleary
Ocala Electric Utility AMI Technician Trainee, Anthony Casillas
Florida Highway Patrol to be recognized:
Lt. Michael Reilly