Edward Hojnicki, Jr.
Chief Executive Officer
Ed Hojnicki, Jr. started his career in the fire service in 1970 as a junior member of the Minquadale Volunteer Fire Company. In 1978, he joined the Wilmington Fire Department as a career firefighter. He served in various positions throughout the different companies of the department and attended numerous courses and specialized training, concentrating on rescue techniques and arson investigation.
In 1984, he was assigned to the Fire Marshall’s office as an arson investigator. While serving in this position, Hojnicki completed the Wilmington Police Academy training course in 1987. After completing his tour with the Fire Marshall's office, he was assigned to the heavy rescue squad where he was promoted to Lieutenant. As a lieutenant, Ed also served in an engine and ladder company. In 1997, he served on the Alcohol Tobacco and Firearm’s National Response Task Force where he conducted an arson investigation for a high-rise fire in Wilmington, Delaware.
In 1998, Hojnicki was promoted to Captain and assigned as the Officer-in-Charge of Fire Station 6. During his tenure as Captain, he began teaching Fire Safety Technology at Delaware Technical and Community College, where he continues to teach.
In 2000, he was promoted to his current position of Battalion Chief. As a Battalion Chief, he is tasked with operational and administrative duties which include the supervision of the department's suppression companies, incident command, and ensuring compliance with the department’s established policies and procedures. He has been instrumental in the creation of the Wilmington Fire Department Arson Task Force, the Department's policy on sexual harassment, and oversees all fire station renovations and upgrades.
Hojnicki is a Delaware State Fire School certified instructor in Basic Firefighting Skills, Rapid Intervention Teams, HAZMAT, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and Firefighter Survival. His other certifications include Fire Officer II, Fire Investigator, Fire Instructor, and Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician-Basic. He holds three Associate Degrees in fire and safety related curriculums as well as a Bachelor of Science in Fire Science Management from the University of Maryland, and a Master’s of Public Administration degree from St. Joseph’s University (2009). He is currently the Lead Instructor and Chief Operations Officer for Contact Front, LLC.
Mark P. Allston, NREMT-P
Chief Operations Officer
Mark Allston has managed to maintain the optimal balance between field training and field operation throughout his EMS career. Upon the completion of honorable service with the United States Marine Corps, Allston received his National Paramedic Certification through the Medical Center of Delaware Paramedic Program in 1990 and joined the New Castle County EMS Division in 1991.
As a successful EMS Operations Field Paramedic, Allston has served in specialized billets exposing him to a variety of emergency service disciplines and ultimately rendering him a subject matter expert in field training, field operations management, and hazardous materials. Throughout his career, he has served as the Field Training Officer, a Hazardous Materials Technician, EMS Applicant Background Investigator, Medical Protocols Committee Member, and Field Operations Supervisor. In addition, Allston served as the Section Commander for Paramedic Training, Selection, and Recruitment with the New Castle County Department of Public Safety, Emergency Medical Services Division.
Allston’s in depth expertise in training has been further developed through is experience has a college level educator. Allston has been an adjunct instructor for the University of Maryland at Baltimore County’s Emergency Health Sciences Program, instructing regionally and in Canada, and an adjunct faculty member for the Division of Clinical Practice and Professional Development at the University of Maryland Medical System at Baltimore.
During his professional service, Allston has received numerous accolades to include decorations for heroism, community policing and outstanding service. Most recently, Allston was awarded the 2008 Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Service, a prestigious honor bestowed upon him by the United States Senate.
Allston is an alumnus of the Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, National Fire Training Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland and has two decades of service in the industrial safety environment functioning as a certified Firefighter II, through the National Board on Fire Service Professional Qualifications and National Registry Certified Paramedic, and in chemical and petroleum processing operations in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Allston has been a certified Paramedic in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey.
Allston is the Emergency Management Advisor and Lead First-Aid Instructor for Contact Front, LLC, and is presently a Lieutenant with the New Castle County Department of Public Safety, Emergency Medical Services Division, serving as a Platoon Field Operations Commander.
Michael K. Scotto
Director of Firefighter Training
Mike Scotto brings with him nearly 30 years of service with the New York City Fire Department. Mike began his career in 1979 assigned to Engine Company 18 in Manhattan where he specialized in extinguishment operations for high-rise building fires as well as residential and commercial occupancies.
In 1992, Scotto transferred to Brooklyn where he was assigned to one of the busiest companies in New York City – Ladder 157. It was at Ladder 157 where Scotto began to refine his knowledge of personnel rescue and extraction and hone his mechanical breaching skills as he was often tasked with dynamic entry into the occupancy, locating the source of smoke, simultaneously searching for victims, then closing with and extracting casualties.
In 1997, Scotto, a new Lieutenant, rotated through various billets and stations in the Bronx until May of 2000 when he again found himself at one of the busiest truck companies in NYC – Ladder 58. It was from Ladder 58 Scotto responded to Ground Zero on September 11, 2001 and survived the collapse of the North Tower. Scotto continues to routinely lead the brave men of Ladder 58 into often uncertain and dangerous situations.
Ladder 58 serves as a Chemical Protective Clothing Company where Scotto is a subject matter expert on the wearing and operation of Level A suits, mass removal of casualties from contaminated areas, and plays an instrumental role in the City’s terrorist response plan.
Scotto remains on the cutting edge of fire ground tactics and procedures training regularly in forcible entry, victim extraction, ventilation, escape methods, building construction, and overall scene safety.
Mike currently serves as the Executive Officer and Building Inspection Coordinator for Ladder 58, and is the Director of Fire Tactics for Contact Front, LLC.
William C. Wennberg
Military Advisor
Will Wennberg began his military service when he enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve in 1994. After completing his undergraduate degree in 2000, he attended Officer Candidate School and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps. Assigned as an infantry officer, while serving on active duty, he held various tactical leadership billets at the platoon and company level as well as administrative positions within Headquarters Marine Corps.
His service began with formal schooling in infantry tactics and amphibious operations, progressing to courses in special operations planning and execution, advanced reconnaissance operations, and employing and controlling supporting arms.
In 2001, shortly after 9/11, he embarked on amphibious shipping and deployed as a platoon commander in support of Operation Enduring Freedom where his platoon conducted security operations in Africa and on the coast of Pakistan.
In 2003, he deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom where he served as an executive officer and fire support team leader for a light-armored reconnaissance company and was decorated for valor. During this tour, his company conducted reconnaissance in force missions, as well as conventional operations, throughout Iraq. In 2005, he was again deployed to Iraq this time to conduct the fielding of a new weapon system to infantry Marines serving in Fallujah.
Wennberg left active service as a Captain in 2006 and is currently the Military Advisor for Contact Front, LLC and proudly serves as secretary to the Philadelphia Ball Committee for the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation.
Wennberg is a graduate of the United States Marine Corps’ Infantry Officer Course, Light-Armored Vehicle Leader’s Course, Tactical Air Control Party School, the United States Army’s Calvary Leader’s Course, completed phase I of Amphibious Warfare School, and received a certificate in program management from the Florida Institute of Technology. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management from Wilmington University (2000) and a Juris Doctorate from Villanova School of Law (2009).
Charles Baldwin
Naval & Leadership Seminar Advisor
Chuck Baldwin has enjoyed a distinguished career in both the military and public education. He is the co-founder and Commandant of the Delaware Military Academy and has served as Principal of George V. Kirk Middle School in the Christina School District in Delaware. Commandant Baldwin holds a masters degree in Secondary School Leadership from Wilmington University and has served on the Delaware principals Academy Executive Board.
Commandant Baldwin received many honors during his 25 year Navy career. For his efforts during Operation Desert Shield, Commandant Baldwin, as Command Master Chief of the nuclear aircraft carrier, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal. In 1992, he was one of four finalists for the Navy’s top enlisted post of Master Chief of the Navy. Additionally he was twice the recipient of presidential awards for management excellence. Commandant Baldwin served in Viet Nam from October 1969 to October 1970 and in the Persian Gulf from October 1991 to March 1992.
In July 1993, Commandant Baldwin accepted the position of Associate Naval Science Instructor with the Seaford School District where he established the first Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (NJROTC) in the State of Delaware. He followed this achievement with the commissioning of a second NJROTC unit at Christiana High School.
While at Christiana, Commandant Baldwin’s unit received awards for five State Drill Championships and one national championship for best overall uniform appearance. The unit was recognized three times as being in the top 20% of the nations’ NJROTC units. He received the Christina School District Citizenship Award in 1997 and was selected as Christiana Teacher of the Year in 1998.
In 2003 Commandant Baldwin co-founded the Delaware Military Academy with a current enrollment of 525 cadets in grades 9-12. The school holds a superior rating under the No Child Left Behind Act and has been designated a “DISTINGUISHED UNIT WITH ACADEMIC HONORS” by the United States Navy. All Navy JROTC units in the State of Delaware were initiated by the Commandant and serve over 750 young women and men annually. Commandant Baldwin currently serves as an advisor for naval and leadership programs for Contact Front, LLC.
Matthew “Boom” Daniel
Executive Leadership Advisor
A 12-year United States Marine Corps Fighter Pilot, Top Gun graduate and Weapons Officer, Boom mentored and trained hundreds of military officers in the arts of small unit leadership, fighter aircraft tactics, and the competencies of operations planning, execution and logistics.
After leaving the Marine Corps, Boom flew for five years as an international captain for the corporate flight department of Allied Signal/Honeywell International. While at Allied and Honeywell, building upon the leadership foundation he had established in the Marine Corps, Boom continued to develop as a leader through personal mentoring by Larry Bossidy, CEO of Allied and Honeywell and co-author of EXECUTION: the Discipline of Getting Things Done. It was through this relationship Boom was inspired to found a leadership and execution training company.
In 2004, Boom founded BizBatt™, a company that maximizes the potential of the workplace through promoting execution and leadership as mutually dependent values that serve as key performance metrics for any organization. Boom brings a refreshing perspective to the marketplace through an innovative approach to building a culture of executives enabled to make the hard decisions and take action in critical situations.
Through BizBatt’s creative team building workshops, leadership discussions, and field exercises, Boom and his staff have worked internationally for:
- Credit Suisse
- Drexel University
- Delaware Qual Conf
- American Eagle Outfitters
- BNP Pariba
- SavATree
- Honeywell International
- Cargill
- Essroc Cement
- EZ-GO
- HSBC
- MaterCard World Wide
- Lycoming Engines
- Vanguard
- Lehigh Universty
- Nestle
- Pfizer
- Nassau Broadcasting
- Tray-Pak
- Bristol Myers
- Squibb
- Adams Outdoor Adventure
- Bracalente Mfg Co
- GlaxoSmith Kline
- Chief Executive Network
- Department of Justice
- Buckeye Pipeline
- Sigma Tau Pharma
Boom holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the Virginia Military Institute, is the Executive Leadership Advisor for Contact Front, LLC, and is the President and Founder of BizBatt™.