St. Charles County Department of Community
Health & The Environment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, February 02, 2004

CONTACTS:
St. Charles County Division of Public Health (636) 949-7400

State Boards Tap Dept. of Community Health & Environment's Expertise

St. Charles County -Two St. Charles County Government employees have been selected to serve on state boards. Gil Copley, Director of St. Charles County's Department of Community Health and the Environment, was recently appointed to the Governor's Lead Poisoning Advisory Committee and Barry Drucker, Environmental Public Health Manager, to the State Milk Board. Both appointments are for two-year terms. Copley and Drucker each have extensive credentials and more than thirty years of experience in the public health profession.

When asked about the appointments Copley stated, "It is an honor to represent St. Charles County Government as Barry and I serve citizens across the state. The Department of Community Health and the Environment seeks to protect and enhance quality of life through good health that comes from education, disease prevention, emergency planning and response, and from promoting and upholding good healthcare and environmental standards and practices. Our service on these boards allows us to do just that on a larger scale; providing benefits state-wide."

As a member of the Governor's Lead Poisoning Advisory Committee, Mr. Copley will work with the State of Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to address the problem of childhood lead poisoning. Members of the committee represent diverse groups interested in the prevention of lead poisoning including insurers, realtors, laboratories, elected officials, financial institutions, economic development professionals, attorneys and hospitals. Mr. Copley represents local government public health departments. In addition to holding substantial public health credentials, he serves as an adjunct faculty instructor for the St. Louis University School of Public Health and as an advisor to local, state, and national committees on community health issues.

Mr. Drucker, a registered sanitarian, brings more than 30 years in local and state government health experience, a Masters of Public Health degree, and extensive qualifications to the State Milk Board. For public health safety reasons, milk is a highly regulated commodity. Inspection and laboratory oversight performed by the board not only protects consumers from food borne outbreaks, but also allows Missouri dairy farmers to ship milk to other states. Such monitoring is especially critical due to homeland security interests in the safety of our United States food supply. Mr. Drucker will work with the State Milk Board to ensure the safety of dairy products in Missouri by oversight of milk production and handling from farm to retail sale.

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