Honor Kevin Costigan's Service

Senate Resolution No. 5907 BY: Senator KAMINSKY COMMENDING Kevin T. Costigan upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by the New York State Senate WHEREAS, It is incumbent upon the people of the State of New York to recognize and acknowledge those within our midst who have made significant contributions to the quality of life therein; and; and WHEREAS, From time to time this Legislative Body takes note of certain extraordinary individuals it wishes to recognize for their valued contributions to the success and progress of society and publicly acknowledge their endeavors which have enhanced the basic humanity among us all; and WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to honor Kevin T. Costigan upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by the New York State Senate; and WHEREAS, The New York State Senate Liberty Medal was established by Resolution and is awarded to individuals who have merited special commendation for exceptional, heroic, or humanitarian acts on behalf of their fellow New Yorkers; and WHEREAS, For the past 12 years, retired NYPD officer and volunteer firefighter Kevin T. Costigan served as the Commander of the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team Region 2 (DMORT 2), having been a part of the organization for more than 20 years; and WHEREAS, DMORT is part of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) under the US Health & Human Services Department (DHHS), which responds to mass fatality incidents to assist the Medical Examiner/Coroners with recovering, identifying and returning victims of mass fatality incidents to their families; and WHEREAS, DMORTs are composed of funeral directors, medical examiners, pathologists, forensic anthropologists, finger print specialists, forensic odontologists, dental assistants, administrative specialists, and security specialists; when deployed, these individuals leave their full time jobs to supplement federal, state, local, tribal and territorial resources; and WHEREAS, Kevin T. Costigan has responded to the following incidents dedicating thousands of hours of service: TWA No. 800 Suffolk County volunteered more than 150 hours (1996); Egypt Air No. 990, Rhode Island - volunteered over 250 hours (1999); September 11th WTC - volunteered over 1,000 hours (2001-2002); AA No. 587 Queens - volunteered over 400 hours (2001-2002); Top Officials (TOPOFF) National Exercise emergency preparation drills, New Jersey - volunteered 60 hours (2005); Hurricane Katrina, Mississippi - volunteered over 200 hours (2005); Continental No. 3407, Buffalo, NY - volunteered over 320 hours (2009); and Hurricane Irene, Rochester, VT - volunteered 72 hours (2011); and WHEREAS, Kevin T. Costigan is well-known for making the DMORT 2 team his top priority and ensuring its readiness to respond at a moments notice to disasters in New York State as well as across the country; and WHEREAS, In addition, Kevin T. Costigan was awarded the Thomas J. Shepardson Award by the National Disaster Medical System for his leadership, vision, service and commitment; he was selected from over

6,000 NDMS personnel and is one of only six people to receive this award; and WHEREAS, In 2008 and 2009, Kevin T. Costigan was a member of an interagency committee led by the New York State Department of Health to develop a county mass fatality annex and to formulate procedures for the state and counties to follow in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak; this work involved trips to Albany as a volunteer to assist in the plan development; and WHEREAS, Kevin T. Costigan has earned the respect and admiration of all of his more than 100 DMORT2 team members as well as the National Disaster Medical System for his commitment, hard work and professionalism; and WHEREAS, In addition, Kevin T. Costigan has served his community as a 43-year active member, and former Chief, of the Oceanside Volunteer Fire Department; he retired from the NYPD as a Lieutenant in 2001 and has been a NY State Licensed Funeral Director since 1979; he is affiliated with many fire department, police and funeral director associations; and WHEREAS, Within every community of the State of New York there are certain individuals who, by virtue of their commitment and dedication, command the respect and admiration of their community for their exemplary contributions and service on behalf of others; Kevin T. Costigan is one such individual; and WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that those who enhance the quality of life in their community and have shown a long and sustained commitment to the maintenance of such high standards, certainly have earned the recognition and applause of all the citizens of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to commend Kevin T. Costigan upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by the New York State Senate; and be it further RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to Kevin T. Costigan.