About the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council
Created in 2001 through an initiative by CAL FIRE, local fire agencies came together with a small group of community members to discuss wildfire risks and protection for communities in Santa Clara County.
Today, the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council (SCFSC) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded by federal grants, contributions and your donations. Our programs protect thousands of residents and homes and bring together individuals, public and private agencies and companies that share a common, vested interest in preventing and reducing losses from wildfires.
Our programs and projects are focused on protecting the 14 Communities at Risk for wildfire in Santa Clara County: Cupertino, East Foothills, Gilroy, Lexington Hills, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Palo Alto, San Jose, San Martin, Saratoga and Stanford. These communities are at risk of wildfires because they have expansive accumulations of natural fuels. In response to this threat, we work to create a "Fire Safe" Santa Clara County -- protecting lives, homes and the environment, through the reduction of built-up hazardous fire-prone vegetation and the creation of informed communities with respect to Defensible Space, general fire safety, and fire's effect and role in our environment.
2012 SCFSC Contact Directory
Officers and Directors
- President
Jerry Serpa, Assistant Chief, Spring Valley Volunteer Fire Department
(408) 891-5551 - First Vice President
Michael Newburn, Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District
(650) 691-2165 - Second Vice President
Rick Parfitt
(408) 975-9591 - Secretary
John Tang, San Jose Water Company
(408) 279-7933 - Treasurer
Allan Thompson
(408) 272-7008 - Director
Nick Ciardella, CAL FIRE Battalion Chief, Santa Clara Unit Training Battalion
(408) 778-8605 - Director
Steve Forman, Fire Captain and Wildland Officer, San Jose Fire Department
(408) 794-7011 - Director
Michael Hamer, Assistant Officer, Emergency Preparedness, Environmental Health & Safety, and Security Services Programs, Santa Clara Valley Water District
(408) 265-2600 - Director
Chris Hughes, Pacific Gas and Electric Company
(408) 725-3364 - Director
Dirk Mattern, Deputy Chief, Santa Clara County Fire Department
(408) 378-4010 - Director
Jenn Viane Riese, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council
(408) 975-9591
FireSafe Council Staff
- Executive Director
Bob Livengood
(408) 655-0392 - Director
Jenn Viane Riese
(408) 975-9591 - Development Director
Jan Cokely
(408) 975-9591 - Lexington Hills Area Manager
Kim Gardner
(408) 353-4395 - Lexington Hills Area Manager
June Salsbury
(408) 205-0115 - South County Project Coordinator
Brian Turner
(408) 891-9065 - Education Coordinator
Eugenia Rendler
(408) 915-7233
SCFSC staff and some volunteers have SCFSC Business Cards for identification purposes. This does not indicate that they are SCFSC employees.
Organizations and Companies Participating in the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council
- CAL FIRE (California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection)
- Casa Loma Volunteer Fire Association
- Milpitas Fire Department
- Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District
- Pacific Gas and Electric Company
- San Jose Fire Department, SJFD Blog
- San Jose Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services
- San Jose Water Company
- Santa Clara County Fire Department
- Santa Clara County Fire Marshal's Office
- Santa Clara County Hazardous Vegetation Program
- Santa Clara County Open Space Authority
- Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation Department
- Santa Clara County Roads and Airports Department
- Santa Clara Valley Water District
- Saratoga Fire Department
- Spring Valley Volunteer Fire Department
- USDI Bureau of Land Management
- Uvas Volunteer Fire Department
- Other volunteer fire departments, homeowners associations and individuals