By William White

Published: March 12, 2008

Alabama’s investment in its children is important to the state’s homeland security future, according to the state’s director of Homeland Security.

“Looking at the homeland security area and the homeland security field, I am going to give you a brief sobering statistic,” said James M. Walker Jr., who has served as director of the Alabama Department of Homeland Security for five years.

“We have got a Fire College in Alabama located over in Tuscaloosa to train firefighters that do their great work around the state,” he said. “Ten years ago, there were over 3,000 applicants applying to attend the school and get their certification to be firefighters here in the state of Alabama.

“Last year, the number was 300,” he said. “So we have to think in terms of this declining pool of young people and so many competing demands for what they want to do with their lives.”

He said the homeland security director is looking 10, 15 to 20 years down the road at critical service professions.

“We need to teach our young people the value of public service,” Walker said. “Not just wearing the military uniform, but wearing the uniform of a police officer, a fire fighter, a medical technician, an emergency manager, or a 911 operator.”

The director said, now if the nation is attacked on its shores, those first responders are not soldiers, airmen, sailors or Marines, but are our police officers and firefighters.

Walker spoke to hundreds at the National Society Luncheon Wednesday, during the second day of the 110th Alabama Society Daughters of the American Revolution State Conference at The Hotel at Auburn University and Dixon Conference Center.

With a record number of members and guests at the National Defense Luncheon, Rita Horton, chairman ASDAR National Defense Committee, presented guests visiting the three-day 110th conference from surrounding states. Guests include Anne Donahue Lampman of California, Betty Hartley Ford of IIllinois, Sharon Ann Stringfellow Hopkins of Michigan and Diana Woods of North Carolina.

The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to promote patriotism, preserve American history and support better education for our nation’s children. Its members are descended from the patriots who won American independence during the Revolutionary War.