The Gordon County Emergency Management Agency has selected Christina Byrd as its new Deputy Director. Byrd will officially begin her new role on August 1.
Byrd brings more than a decade of emergency management experience to Gordon County. She began her career in 2012 as a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) volunteer before advancing to become a CERT instructor and program coordinator.
In 2020, Byrd joined the Whitfield County Emergency Management Agency full-time, where she played a key role in supporting complex emergency operations, coordinating multi-agency response efforts, and assisting with emergency planning, training, public education, and large-scale disaster exercises.
One of Byrd’s most notable accomplishments is the development of the Place of Worship Safety Seminar, an interdisciplinary preparedness program designed to help faith-based organizations better prepare for emergencies. The initiative combines emergency planning, Stop the Bleed training, Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events (CRASE), disaster psychology, and faith-based resilience strategies. The program was later recognized by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as a case study in its Engaging Faith-Based and Community Organizations Planning guidance.
Byrd will fill the position previously held by Wendy Saylors, who resigned earlier this year.
County officials say Byrd’s experience in emergency operations, community preparedness, and collaborative response planning will help strengthen Gordon County’s emergency management efforts as she steps into her new leadership role beginning August 1.