Gary DeLapp Hotelier Gary A. DeLapp was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement award for his work ethic and can-do attitude that have helped him rise to lead multiple hotel companies in his 40plus years in the hotel industry. DeLapp worked his way up from hotel dishwasher to senior vice president of operations early within his hotel industry career.
Jarl “J.T.” Young Jarl “J.T.” Young was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement award for his enduring success in public service and community leadership. Young began his secondary education as dual-enrollee at PSC studying pre-engineering. He would go on to the University of Florida, the University of West Florida and finally Harvard Business School. A graduate of Leadership Pensacola and Leadership Florida, Young served as a gubernatorial appointee on the Judicial Nominating Commission for Florida’s First Judicial Circuit. In 2008, he was awarded the Gulf Power Company Leadership Award. In 2017, he received the PACE Community Leader of the Year Award.
He has gone on to multiple companies as CEO to significant expansions. In the case of one company, he grew the brand from 100 to 700 hotels in less than 48 months. DeLapp’s success began at Pensacola State College where he joined Delta Kappa Alpha, a fraternity whose mission statement includes building lifelong character, ethical and productive business practices, philanthropic action and fraternal bonds.
Chip Simmons Escambia County Sheriff ’s Office Chief Deputy Chip Simmons was recognized as Hometown Hero for his decorated career in local law enforcement. Simmons earned his associate degree in criminal justice from PSC and a bachelor degree in the same from Troy University. He went on to receive his master’s degree in public administration from Troy, and later graduated from the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia. Simmons was hired by the Pensacola Police Department in 1986. He worked his way up the ranks at the police
department for 29 years, retiring as police chief in 2015. Simmons has served on the board of directors for the Favor House of Northwest Florida Inc., the Ronald McDonald House and on the Pensacola State College Board of Trustees. A Leadership Pensacola Class of 2004 graduate, Simmons has received numerous law enforcement accolades, including a Bronze Cross and the Gold Medal of Valor. He also has been named to the Police and Firefighters Heroes Hall of Fame and the Pine Forest High School Alumni Hall of Fame. In 2013, he received the Mayor’s Leadership Award.
Young has served on numerous community boards and chaired the Chief Judge’s Children’s Council Fatherhood Advocacy Committee. In 2018, he was presented with Pensacola’s MLK Living the Dream Award, where he was recognized as a resident who embodies the American dream that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., envisioned in his inspirational “I Have a Dream” speech. After a nationwide search in 2018, Young was appointed president and CEO of the Memphis (Tennessee) Light, Gas, and Water Division.
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