Meet the Staff

Photo courtesy of Brooke Muratori

"The CEO"

Anthony DeLucia

Twenty years ago The Boss began snapping photos, having the film developed and storing the pictures in albums. Little did he know back then that the internet would come into existence, and he would have his vast collection displayed for all to see.

Still going strong after twenty years, DeLucia tries to get out and cover every event in the Valley area. Before the launch of the site, he was only known by a handful of people and now he's practically a household name.

He's the brains behind the operations and Owner of this Empire.

"The Webmaster"

Chris Schwarz

The first employee hired was the webmaster. Schwarz was paid a king's ransom to setup and maintain the site. He was given the best office in the corporate headquarters and expected to be on-call 24/7/365.

Occasionally he takes photos himself and adds them to the site. We want to tell him to stick to the technical stuff and leave the important work to the rest of the staff, but we don't want to hurt his feelings.

"The Senior Correspondent"

Tom Lenart Jr.

Lenart Jr, a life-long friend of DeLucia's, was hired to help with photographing incidents in the local area. Then he hit the big time with the bailout pictures from Howard Ave in Ansonia in early 2009, and was immediately promoted to Senior Correspondent...and given the Webmaster's office. He also makes the webmaster bring him coffee every morning.

He's the Big Hitter now. He leaves the minor incidents to the junior photographers on staff, but if there is a major event, you can be sure he'll be there.

"The Consigliere"

Tom Lenart Sr.

As it became apparent that the staff would have to grow, it was time to bring in someone who could handle this group of misfits. Lenart Sr. was the man hired to be an adviser to The Boss and a mediator for all staff disputes. Handling these knuckleheads is by far the most difficult job on staff.

He's also a pretty good photographer too...and he is still faithful to his duties while The Boss is on vacation...our other photographers...not so much.

"X-IV"

Fred Tidmarsh

Fred is the original dispatcher at First Due Fire Photos. In the early days, when we had DeLucia as the only staff photographer, Fred would make sure Anthony was aware of all important incidents in the area.

Thanks to the generous profit-sharing program at First Due, Fred was able to go into semi-retirement. Nowadays he is on duty from 6:00am to 6:30am, and from 5:00pm to 5:15pm (it's a union contract thing). The rest of the time he can be found relaxing on his Barcalounger...in his underwear. That's one picture you will never see on First Due.

"The Dispatcher"

Scott Foster

With multiple photographers on staff, it became apparent that we would have to hire a full-time dispatcher. Someone who could keep track of calls, and dispatch staff photographers to the various events in the area.

Perched atop "The Hill" in a satellite office, Foster monitors the scanner 24 hours a day. He never sleeps. Ever.

"The Chairman of the Bored"

Ryan Hart

As the business began to grow we needed to hire someone with "business savvy". All the other staff members wanted to do was spend money on new cameras, computers, etc. We needed someone to come in take the reigns and manage the business end of things.

Hart was the man for the job. And now, armed with a camera of his own, believes he can move up the ladder and take Lenart's job.

"The Chief Photographer"

Scott Pelletier

We found a faithful photographer who has his area covered. You can be sure if there is an incident in Oxford, The Chief has got it covered. That means we can save resources and have them prepared to cover other areas of the state.

"The Bouncer"

Rich Schwarzenberg

Rich has donated pictures to the site on several occasions since we launched. We gladly accepted them, as we do with anyone who would like to contribute photos, but it became apparent that we would have to add him to the staff in recent months. Rich is a big guy and we wanted to have someone who could protect our photographers if needed.

We hired him straight from the Prison Re-entry Program. Think you can take him? Go ahead...we'd like to see you try it.

"The Secretary"

Hunny

We're really not sure why The Boss hired her? She doesn't answer the phones, she can't type, she doesn't make the coffee...??? Strange.

"The Tour Commander"

Lou Oliwa

Well, there really is not enough money in the budget for another hire. But Lou desperately wanted to be part of the staff. So we appointed him Tour Commander - responsible for arranging all road trips, driving the staff to and from...in his own car...with the gas he paid for, and buying lunch for everyone.

He works for free. All he requested was a desk next to Hunny.

"The Lawyer"

Dave Lenart

Dave was originally hired to be the Groundskeeper at the Corporate Office. But after demonstrating hard work and dedication to the tasks at hand, he was promoted to Lawyer. We figured it's always good to have access to sound legal advice, and Dave has driven by Yale Law School on several occasions. That and the fact that he is a politician - and politicians and lawyers are similar in many ways - made him the most qualified for the job.

We asked him if he could start reading up on law, but he said the last book he read was written by Dr. Seuss.

"The Dynamic Duo"

Well, you know you have hit the big time when you can boast of having a famous duo on staff. Throughout history there have been such famous duos as Laurel & Hardy, Abbott & Costello, Hall & Oates, and Batman & Robin just to name a few. First Due now has our very own Dynamic Duo - John Dantona and Lou Uvino. Yea, Dantona & Uvino doesn't have the same "ring" to it that some of the other famous couple do, but they are a package deal. You don't get one without the other.

"The Shrink"

John D'Antona

Interesting little tidbit - when we first began setting up the site several years back it was John who suggested the name 'First Due Fire Photos'.

Today, he serves as the staff Shrink and operates a halfway house out of his own home. Staff members and others can stop by for a period of physical and spiritual refreshment.

"The Chef"

Lou Uvino

The Boss was concerned about the health of his staff members. Most of us survive on diets that consist of fast food and junk food. So Lou was hired to provide decent meals for any staff member. He resides in Dantona's halfway house where he prepares home-cooked meals for those in need. He is also our resident animal lover...particularly fond of cats.

"The Ambassador"

Joe Matusovich

First Due's influence continues to grow throughout the New England area and beyond. So we needed to hire someone who could serve as a diplomatic representative. Joe's sphere of influence is almost as large as that of First Due, and there is no one better at making alliances and maintaining peaceful relations than Sir Matusovich.