“In Loving Memory”
LAVERNE HOGAN
GREATER HARRIS COUNTY 9-1-1 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
LEADER IN STATE AND NATION
Laverne Hogan, Executive Director of Greater Harris County 9-1-1 Emergency Network (the Network), died Thursday, April 22, 2004 at her Houston home. She was 65 years old. Hogan, a pioneer in emergency communications statewide and nationally, was the face and voice of 9-1-1 in Harris and Fort Bend Counties.
I have had many extremely gratifying years working with Laverne for the citizens in this part of Texas, said Tom Bass, Chairman of the Network and former Harris County Commissioner. Her passing is a great loss to us all.
Nearly 20 years ago Hogan worked for then Harris County Commissioner Tom Bass and Houston City Councilmember Eleanor Tinsley to help create the first enhanced 9-1-1 system in the State of Texas. She was instrumental in the original study commission for statewide 9-1-1 from 1985-1987. Hogan also contributed to the publication Implementing 9-1-1 Systems in Texas: Legal and Institutional Background.
Under Hogans leadership the Network has consistently provided the most technologically advanced 9-1-1 service available, while assessing one of the lowest 9-1-1 service fees in the nation.
Laverne was proud to lead one of the finest 9-1-1 systems in the country, said Lavergne Schwender, Legal Counsel for the Network. She knew that building the nations most cutting edge 9-1-1 system required incredible political balance and foresight.
Hogan worked very closely with the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) where she was elected to serve as its Southeast Regional President from 1996 to 2000. She was appointed by Governor Ann Richards to serve as a commissioner for the Texas Commission on State Emergency Communications (CSEC) from 1992 to1998.
As the Networks top executive, she has cultivated relationships and worked closely with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC); members of the U.S. Congress, Texas Legislature, and the governing bodies of the many local jurisdictions served by the Network; and the Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC).
Greater Harris County 9-1-1 Emergency Network is the largest 9-1-1 system in Texas, and the third largest in the United States. The Network provides 9-1-1 service for all 47 cities wholly or partially within Harris and Fort Bend Counties and the unicorporated areas.
The vigil service is scheduled Sunday, April 25, 2004, 3:00 p.m., at Earthman Funeral Home/Hunters Creek, 8303 Katy Freeway, Houston, Texas. Visitation is scheduled from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. The Mass of Christian Burial will take place Monday, April 26, 9:30 a.m. at St. Cecilias Catholic Church, 11720 Joan of Arc, Houston, Texas. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Dominican Sisters of Houston located at 6501 Almeda Rd., Houston, Texas 77021.