Josh Coltrain, who serves as Environmental Health Supervisor for the Dare County Department of Health & Human Services, has been named Dare County Employee of the Month for August 2024. The prestigious award was presented to Coltrain by Dare County Department of Health & Human Services Director Dr. Sheila Davies during the Dare County Board of Commissioners meeting that was held at 9 a.m. on Monday, October 7, 2024.*
Coltrain’s service to Dare County began on October 15, 2007, when he was initially hired to serve as an Environmental Health Specialist for the Dare County Department of Health & Human Services before being promoted to Senior Environmental Health Specialist on July 2, 2018. On December 13, 2018, Coltrain was named interim Environmental Health Supervisor, and on March 24, 2019, he was officially promoted to his current position as Environmental Health Supervisor.
In this role, Coltrain is tasked with overseeing and managing Dare County’s Environmental Health programs to ensure public safety and compliance with numerous federal, state and local health regulations. His wide array of day-to-day duties include supervising staff members within the Environmental Health Unit; conducting inspections of food establishments, septic systems and an assortment of public facilities ranging from lodging establishments and residential care facilities to schools, daycares and public swimming pools; as well as investigating public health complaints and enforcing health codes.
Dare County Department of Health & Human Services Director Dr. Sheila Davies (left) presenting the award to Josh Coltrain (right).
Additionally, Coltrain is responsible for providing training, guidance and resources to staff, collaborating with other departments and agencies on health initiatives, and addressing a variety of environmental health risks in the community, such as water quality and waste management issues. As Environmental Health Supervisor, Coltrain—who holds all seven state environmental health authorizations (child lead poisoning prevention, private wells, pools, tattoos, schools and child centers, food and lodging, and onsite wastewater)—plays a crucial role in safeguarding community health by ensuring that all environmental standards are maintained.
“Josh has a wealth of knowledge and professionalism and does an outstanding job for the county,” said Davies, who noted that, in addition to passing both written and field exams, maintaining each of these state authorizations also requires completing continuing education courses on an annual basis. “He is well deserving of this recognition.”
As she continued her presentation, Davies highlighted Coltrain’s tireless efforts to address recently imposed onsite wastewater legislation with the potential to create significant financial burdens on local residents and businesses. His dedication to advocating against this legislation was also noted by one of his colleagues, who praised Coltrain for his ongoing efforts to mitigate these potential hardships and protect the community in her Employee of the Month nomination form.
“Josh has worked very hard this past year to advocate for changes to the septic laws that will ensure that home and business owners can afford to have safe, working septic systems across North Carolina. He has had multiple meetings in Raleigh and in Dare County trying to advocate for these changes,” the nominator wrote.
Davies also pointed out the fact that, in addition to advocating for residents and businesses owners throughout the Dare County community, Coltrain also advocates for the well-being of his colleagues within the Environmental Health Unit, and she continued her presentation by sharing some of the sentiments that were expressed by one of Coltrain’s team members.
“As a supervisor, Josh not only checks in on how his employees are doing with their workloads, but he also makes a point to ask how we're doing and asking about our families,” Davies read from the Employee of the Month nomination form. “He then follows up with us later to check to see if there have been improvements if a family member is sick, or if we expressed a concern about something. He also is available to talk if an employee needs just a listening ear.”
Josh Coltrain stands with his Dare County Department of Health & Human Services colleagues, holding his Employee of the Month award.
Davies also remarked that, although working in Environmental Health can present a variety of unique challenges, Coltrain recognizes the importance of his duties and the essential role he and his team play in safeguarding the health of the community.
“Being in Environmental Health is not an easy job. Josh and his team understand the delicate nature of this work and are committed to providing exceptional customer service despite sometimes some uncomfortable situations that arise,” said Davies. “He and his team have seen the good, bad and the ugly sometimes during inspections, and despite having to tackle some significant challenges, the department frequently gets letters and calls with compliments and accolades for their helpfulness and service. Josh and his team are always performing their jobs with the ultimate goal of ensuring establishments and sites meet code requirements for safety, all as part of ensuring and protecting public health.”
As she concluded her remarks and presented Coltrain with his Employee of the Month award, Davies commented, “I’m incredibly proud of Josh and grateful for his service and his friendship, and I’m thrilled to be able to present this recognition that's so well-deserved. Thank you for your service and all that you do for the county.”
Following Davies’ Employee of the Month presentation, Dare County Board of Commissioners Vice Chairman Wally Overman also praised Coltrain for his extensive advocacy on behalf of the many Dare County residents and business owners who were set to potentially experience significant financial hardships due to the imposed onsite wastewater legislation Coltrain has worked so diligently to address.
“Josh's work on the septic laws is going to save individual families who were faced with having to redo their septic systems literally thousands of dollars, and I don't think that can be recognized enough,” said Overman. “Josh, great work in that regard. Thank you.”
For more information about the many services and resources that are provided by Dare County Environmental Health, please click here.
 
Molly Greenwood, who serves as an Advanced EMT with Dare County EMS, has been named Dare County Employee of the Month for September 2024. The prestigious award was presented to Greenwood by Dare County EMS Director Chief Jennie Collins during the Dare County Board of Commissioners meeting that was held at 9 a.m. on Monday, October 7, 2024.*
Greenwood began her service to Dare County on April 4, 2022, when she was hired as a part-time EMT for Dare County EMS before becoming a full-time EMT on November 14, 2022. On May 14, 2024, Greenwood—who also serves as a captain for the Hatteras Island Rescue Squad, a nonprofit organization based in Buxton that performs water beach and water rescues and provides emergency medical services for the communities on Hatteras Island—was promoted to her current position as an Advanced EMT with Dare County EMS.
As she began her Employee of the Month presentation, Collins shared that, due to Greenwood’s extensive experience in providing beach driving training to her fellow crew members with the Hatteras Island Rescue Squad, she was tasked with conducting training sessions for her Dare County EMS colleagues, providing essential instruction on the proper methods and techniques for driving on the beach when attempting to reach a patient in need of assistance as well as transporting them off the beach so they can be taken to a medical facility for further treatment.
Dare County EMS Director Chief Jennie Collins (left) presents the award to Molly Greenwood (right).
“Because of her experience with teaching this topic as an officer with Hatteras Island Rescue Squad, [Dare County EMS has] received positive feedback from the individuals she’s trained,” read a nomination form recommending that Greenwood be recognized as Dare County Employee of the Month. “It is a great benefit to our [EMS] department to properly train these individuals should the need arise for them to drive on the beach—not just correctly without getting stuck in the sand, but more importantly safely, as emergency response on a populated beach comes with inherent risks.”
As she continued her presentation, Collins noted that Greenwood jumped at the opportunity to provide this essential training for her fellow Dare County EMS crew members, never showing any hesitation when it came to conducting the department’s formal beach driving program—even when it required her to work on days she would typically have off and to provide instruction to her own supervisors.
“We came to her and said, ‘Hey, we have this project, and we want you to take all the supervisors out and make sure that their beach driving is on point,’” said Collins. “No pressure—it's just all her supervisors! Molly does what she always does: she just smiles and goes, ‘OK!” And that's what she did. So through her days off, we would send supervisors down, and she would do the formal training with them. Then she would go out and coach them, and she would correct them as to what they needed to do. Over several weeks, she worked through all of that—all of the different supervisors and the QRVs [quick response vehicles]—to make sure that we had that readiness [for beach driving and rescues] maintained.”
Image of Molly Greenwood standing with her Dare County EMS colleagues, holding her Employee of the Month award.
Collins’ sentiments regarding Greenwood’s willingness to go above and beyond the call of her regular duties in her role as Advanced EMT were also echoed by those who nominated her for the esteemed honor of being named Dare County Employee of the Month.
“The sacrifice of her time by conducting these [training sessions] on her days off—along with the potential discomfort of instructing and correcting individuals who are her supervisors—is highly commendable,” the nomination form stated. “The care and passion she provides to her peers and community is evident and sincerely acknowledged by all! We are certainly proud of her efforts and impact on others.”
As she concluded her remarks and presented Greenwood with her Dare County Employee of the Month award, Collins commented, “Molly, thank you for everything that you do for us and for all the dedication that you have. I’m so proud of you to be able to award this to you for September's Employee of the Month.”
For more information about Dare County EMS, please visit DareNC.gov/EMS.
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