Northwest Central Dispatch director to retire

Executive Director Cindy Barbera-Brelle will retire from Northwest Central Dispatch System's 9-1-1 Center early next year.

Barbera-Brelle's last day at Arlington Heights-based Northwest Central Dispatch - a center that serves 21 Northwest suburban police and fire departments - is Jan. 22, according to a news release.

During her more than 13 years with NWCD, the center began serving three additional communities - Schaumburg, Inverness and Rolling Meadows - and became the first dispatch center in the state to partner with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. It also became the first center to offer text to 911 service, according to the news release.

"On behalf of the NWCD board of directors, I want to extend my sincere appreciation to Cindy for her significant contributions to the organization," board Chairman Dane Bragg said. "She will be missed and we wish her well on this next chapter of her life."

John Ferraro, former deputy director at DuPage Public Safety Communications and executive director of the West Suburban Consolidated Dispatch Center, will take the head spot at Northwest Central Dispatch after Barbera-Brelle retires.

Ferraro, who was chosen after a nationwide search, lives in Arlington Heights and teaches classes at Harper College in Palatine.