ITASCA, IL – October 28, 2026 – Darley, a leading provider of defense, fire, and emergency services equipment, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dan Covelli, RADM (Ret) Mike Johnson, Mike Derrios, and General (Ret) Paul J. LaCamera to its Defense Advisory Board.

Paul J. LaCamera, General (Ret)

Retired U.S. Army General Paul LaCamera brings four decades of distinguished military leadership and national security experience. Most recently, he served as Commander of United Nations Command, ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command, and U.S. Forces Korea, following senior commands that included U.S. Army Pacific, XVIII Airborne Corps, Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve, and the 75th Ranger Regiment. A combat veteran of operations in Panama, Afghanistan, and Iraq, LaCamera is a recipient of the Silver Star and numerous other military honors. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy and holds a master’s degree in National Security and Strategic Studies.

Dan Covelli, USN (Ret) 

Dan “Stuckey” Covelli is a senior defense executive with more than 30 years of leadership experience spanning military aviation, acquisition, program management, and the defense industry. Following a 29-year U.S. Navy career, retiring as a Captain, he held senior leadership roles with Lockheed Martin and KBR before founding Covelli & Associates, where he advises defense organizations on growth, operational performance, and acquisition strategy. A former Navy carrier aviator and test pilot, Covelli brings extensive expertise in aviation and weapon systems, training solutions, and defense acquisition, including leadership of major programs supporting U.S. and Allied forces. He holds degrees from SUNY Maritime College, the University of Tennessee, and the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School.

Michael Johnston, RADM, USCG (Ret)

Rear Admiral Michael Johnston is a seasoned senior executive with more than three decades of leadership experience spanning national security, operations, technology, higher education, and organizational transformation. His distinguished U.S. Coast Guard career includes serving as Superintendent of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Commander of Coast Guard District Nine, and Chief Acquisition Officer, where he oversaw a $2 billion annual portfolio and led major modernization initiatives. Johnston holds master’s degrees from MIT and Georgia Tech and has completed executive programs at Harvard and National Defense University. He brings extensive expertise in strategic planning, technology modernization, enterprise risk, workforce development, and governance to the Darley Defense Advisory Board.

Michael Derrios

Michael W. Derrios is a distinguished government acquisition executive with more than 30 years of leadership experience across federal service, the military, and private sector. A Senior Executive Service member since 2015, he has held senior procurement leadership roles with the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Coast Guard, and Transportation Security Administration, overseeing major acquisition and national security initiatives. He also served in the U.S. Air Force and Maryland Air National Guard. Derrios brings extensive expertise in government procurement, acquisition strategy, and national security to the Darley Defense Advisory Board.

Paul C. Darley, Chairman and CEO, commented, “We’re honored to welcome these exceptional leaders to our Defense Advisory Board. Their depth of experience and perspective will be invaluable as we continue to innovate and strengthen our support of the warfighter.”

The appointment of the new members reflects Darley’s ongoing commitment to building on the strength of its Defense Advisory Board with experienced leaders who provide strategic guidance and oversight in support of the company’s long-term direction supporting the military community.

ITASCA, IL – October 29, 2026 – Darley and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) today named the winners of the fifth annual Fire Service Thought Leadership Essay Competition, which drew over 40 essays from five countries: the United States, Canada, Australia, England, and Israel. This year’s question: How can artificial intelligence improve firefighter health, wellness, and safety?

The three winning essays approach the question from different angles but reach the same conclusion: the fire service already has much of the knowledge and information needed to understand its risks. The opportunity is to translate that knowledge into action, building on existing efforts to further improve firefighter survivability.

First place ($3,000): Alex Zielinski, Fire Chief, Eli Lilly Fire Department, Houston, Texas

Zielinski, who previously served as deputy chief and division chief of training for Lilly in Lebanon, Indiana, proposes a Firefighter Health Risk Intelligence System. It would read the records a department already keeps (incident reports, training logs, near-miss reports, PPE compliance) against the full library of NIOSH firefighter fatality investigations, then hand back specific findings and a ranked list of where to start. No new data collection, no analyst required.

“The gap between knowing and acting is no longer a technology limitation. It is a priority limitation,” he writes.

Second place ($2,000): Capt. Daniel Fernandez, Virginia Beach Fire Department

Fernandez calls for an AI “safety layer” built on data departments already collect, from rehab vitals to staffing patterns. He has built part of it himself. Stuck at a slow station with few chances to hear officers run a fire, he used AI to create a voice-driven command simulator that runs on a computer or tablet. Now called Fire Ground Sim, it is used by more than 400 firefighters.

Third place ($1,000): Sara (Mills) Kerr, Fire and Rescue NSW, Australia

Kerr, a qualified firefighter and communications operator who is also a doctoral candidate at the University of Newcastle, takes on cognitive overload. She proposes an AI assistant bound only to an agency’s own pre-incident plans, SOPs and hazmat references, running on crews’ existing tablets even when the internet drops. It would flag hydrants, hazardous materials and building risks before the first unit arrives. The decisions stay with people.

“AI appears to know everything, yet it thinks about nothing,” she writes.

Where the essays came from

Essays came from the United States, Canada, Australia, England and Israel, from members of career, volunteer and industrial fire departments. Writers ranged from line firefighters and company officers to chiefs, training officers, researchers and educators. Across the field, three ideas kept coming up: the data already exists but sits in separate systems or on paper; the goal is catching risk before an injury, with many writers pointing to the NFL’s Digital Athlete program as a model; and AI should back up firefighter judgment, never replace it, with privacy built in from the start.

“These essays came from people who live with the problem every shift. That’s exactly why we asked them. Several of these ideas could be tested in a firehouse next month, not five years from now,” said Paul Darley, CEO & Chairman of Darley.

“Everyone Goes Home has always been about preventing the next line-of-duty death before it happens. These firefighters showed how new tools can serve that mission without taking judgment out of human hands,” said Danny Kistner, Director of Fire Programs at the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

What’s next

Winners will be featured on Inside Darley, the Darley Times newsletter and the InService podcast, and in fire service publications including Fire Engineering, Firehouse, FireRescue1 and CRACKYL. The first-place winner will present at the TEEX Leadership Development Symposium, Jan. 6-8, 2027, in The Woodlands, Texas, and at Fire-Rescue International (FRI).

The winning essays will be published in the 2026 Top Essays Booklet, available in mid-November at darley.com/essay-competition. The 2027 prompt will be released before the end of 2026.

The competition was conceived by Garry Briese and is sponsored by Darley in collaboration with the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

­­­­­­­­­­About Darley: You serve others. We serve you. Darley provides the highest quality pump, technology, and equipment solutions for first responders around the world. With origins in Midwest manufacturing, Darley offers a complete line of unmanned systems, immersive training technology, equipment and pumps. Learn more on our websites: www.darley.com and shop.darley.com.

About the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation: The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) was created by Congress in 1992 to honor and remember America’s fallen firefighters, assist their families, and support programs that improve firefighter safety and prevent line-of-duty deaths. For more information, visit www.firehero.org.