Chief Gene Saunders, Founder/CEO & Chief Director General of Lifesaver International was recently selected as Top CEO of the Year by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) for his outstanding leadership, dedication and commitment to the industry.
Inclusion with the International Association of Top Professionals is an honor in itself, only a few members in each discipline are chosen for this distinction. These special honorees are distinguished based on their professional accomplishments, academic achievements, leadership abilities, longevity in the field, other affiliations and contributions to their communities. All honorees are invited to attend IAOTP’s Annual Award Gala at the end of this year for a night to honor their achievements. www.iaotp.com/award-gala
With more than 4 decades of professional experience as a proficient Officer of the Law, Chief Saunders has certainly proven himself as an accomplished professional and expert within a variety of fields. He is a dynamic results-driven leader who has exceled in every position he has ever had the honor of serving. Currently, he is the Founder/CEO & Chief Director General of Lifesaver International based out of Port St. Lucie, Florida. Having founded Project Lifesaver International in 1999 he has overseen its growth with more than 1,600 public safety organizations in 50 states, 6 Provinces in Canada and 1 agency in Australia.
Project Lifesaver is a 501 (C)(3) community based, public safety, non-profit organization that provides law enforcement, fire/rescue, and caregivers with a program designed to protect, and when necessary, quickly locate individuals with cognitive disorders who are prone to the life-threatening behavior of wandering. Project Lifesaver’s program has helped provide thousands of family’s peace of mind knowing that their loved one had protection and safety in case they wander. To date 3,763 people have been rescued through Project Lifesaver.
Chief Saunders impressive repertoire of prior roles includes his 33 years of service with the Chesapeake Police Department serving in Patrol, Vice, Narcotics, Detectives and Training. He served in line function and command elements of each of these units. Chief Saunders co-founded the Special Weapons and Tactics team in 1974 serving as tactical commander and commander for 23 years with over 800 operations. Additionally, he was Chief Investigator on several large multi-state, international drug and organized crime conspiracy investigations. Served as Shift Commander, Olympic Security Team, Soccer venue, Olympics, Atlanta, Georgia 1996. Upon his retirement in 2001 as a Captain, he served in the National Guard and State Defense Force in Infantry, Airborne and Ranger Units in leadership and command positions. Moreover, Chief Saunders was in the US Air Force Aux. (Civil Air Patrol) as a Senior Squadron (Ranger) commander and 5 years as Commandant of the Middle East Region Staff College. Equally, he is a Certified instructor in Pursuit Driving, Firearms, Special Operations, Raid Planning, General Law Enforcement and Search and Rescue. Also, Chief Saunders has functioned as a Helicopter Flight Officer, as a volunteer, with the Virginia Beach Police Department and did several years of skydiving.
His remarkable skills and specialties include but are not limited to: Search and Rescue, Training, Interrogation, Public Speaking, Firearms, Driving, Special Operations, Investigations, Non-Profits, Crime Prevention, Preparedness, Command, Electronic Search and Rescue, Intelligence, Program Management, Expert Witness, Community Policing, Team Building, Supervisory Skills, First Responder, SWAT, Leadership, Crisis Management, Surveillance, Emergency Services, Private Investigations, Project Planning, Homeland Security, Disaster Response, Criminal Justice, Patrol, Security Operations and Personal Protection.
The President of IAOTP, Stephanie Cirami stated, choosing Chief Saunders for this award was an easy decision for our panel to make. He is brilliant at what he does, has tremendous foresight and his list of accomplishments and accolades were exactly what we were looking for. We felt he would be an amazing asset to our network of professionals. We hope to spend time with him at the Annual Awards Gala.”
Throughout his illustrious career, Chief Saunders has received awards, accolades and has been recognized internationally for his expertise, he is widely known as the Father of radio tracking recovery of persons at risk. This year he will be considered for a feature article in TIP (Top Industry Professional) Magazine and also for the International Law Hero Award given by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP). Chief Saunders will receive his award while in attendance of IAOTP’s 2021 Annual Awards Gala being held at the magnificent Plaza Hotel in New York City this December.
Furthermore, Chief Saunders has earned 3 Commendation Medals and the Chief’s Leadership Award given by the Chesapeake Police Department, 3 Line of Duty Injury Medals and 3 Silver Stars for Valor for three separate incidents given by the American Police Hall of Fame. He also received a Presidential Commendation for his SWAT service given by President Bill Clinton, earned the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation’s “Service Before Self” Citizens Honor Award and was awarded as Non-Profit of the Year for 2019. Along with these merits also include the Local Hero Award given by the Bank of America, he was named as a Person of Distinction by the Al Cole Radio Show, he received the Moving America Forward Award given by the William Shatner TV Show and was granted the Hero Award from Pilot International-Virginia District. Chief Saunders is actively involved in 11 different prestigious organizations as his career continues to advance.
In addition to his successful career, Chief Saunders is a sought-after speaker and the author of several articles for magazines concerning wandering. He has appeared on numerous local, national and international radio and television programs such as: CBS; the Early Show; Extreme Makeover Home Edition; Living the Life; Fox News; The Discovery Channel, CNN News, The Daily Buzz and William Shatner’s “Moving America Forward.” Chief Saunders also held lead and supporting roles on the following TV series: The Prosecutors, The FBI Files, The New Detectives and The Untold Stories of the Navy SEALS.
Looking back, Chief Saunders attributes his success to his perseverance, education, resourcefulness and patience. When not working, he enjoys spending time with his family and traveling. For the future, Chief Saunders will continue his mission of “Bringing Loved Ones Home”.
For more information on Chief Saunders please visit: www.projectlifesaver.org
About IAOTP
The International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) is an international boutique networking organization that handpicks the world’s finest, most prestigious top professionals from different industries. These top professionals are given an opportunity to collaborate, share their ideas, be keynote speakers, and to help influence others in their fields. This organization is not a membership that anyone can join. You have to be asked by the President or be nominated by a distinguished honorary member after a brief interview.
IAOTP’s experts have given thousands of top prestigious professionals around the world, the recognition and credibility that they deserve and have helped in building their branding empires. IAOTP prides itself to be a one of a kind boutique networking organization that hand picks only the best of the best and creates a networking platform that connects and brings these top professionals to one place.
For More information on IAOTP please visit: www.iaotp.com
