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September-October 2014
IMCDOL
N.C. Department of Labor
Cherie Berry , Commissioner
www.nclabor.com
1-800-625-2267
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18th Annual Carolina Star Safety Conference
By LciMont Smith, Recognition Program Manager
The Annual Carolina Star Safety Conference took place at the
Joseph S.
Кошу
Convention Center in Greensboro on Sept. 17-19.
The theme of the conference was “Living the Safety Life.” More
than 600 participants from across the state attended the conference,
including a variety of vendors and speakers at the event.
Opening day for conference activity began with prcconfcrence
workshops designed to encourage the growth of the N.C.
Department of Labor’s Star Program. The preconference workshops
included topics that focused on the Star application and evaluation
process. In addition, there were preeonference workshops to assist
current participants with preparing their Annual Star Report and
other topics to assist all participants with OS HA recordkeeping.
As the day progressed, the conference transitioned into the general
session, where keynote speaker Kina Repp captivated the audience
with a compelling story about a work-related industrial accident that
forever changed her life. Repp is a safety and motivational speaker
who lost her ami within the first 40 minutes of being assigned duties
on her new job at an Alaskan fish cannery.
During the summer of 1990, Repp went to Alaska to cam money
to pay for her college tuition. Repp felt her assigned duties at the fish
cannery were not safe. However, Repp did not want to disappoint her supervisor; therefore, she continued to work in these unsafe conditions,
leading to the horrifying chain of events that followed and dramatically changed her life.
Repp's fight for survival began the moment she found herself caught in the moving conveyor belt. As she so bravely battled for her life, she
found herself to be more concerned about the ripple effect her accident would have on the lives of others. She continuously relives and shares
her story with others so that they do not have to experience the trauma that she did several years ago.
“If you’re taking shortcuts or you’re being complacent or you’re not paying attention to what you’re doing, more than likely you’re going to
be injured,’’ Repp said. “It might not be today, it might not be 10 years from now, but eventually those risks that you’re taking are going to catch
up to you. I just feel so passionate about wanting people to understand that this is about you making choices and making decisions to keep yourself
safe so you don’t have a family member getting a phone call that says you’ve been injured, or worse, that you’ve died because of a job. It’s just
not worth it.”
The Carolina Star Safety Conference provided the participants with many opportunities to network and discuss safe work practices. There were
several breakout session topics that concentrated on the key components of an effective safety and health management system. In addition, many
breakout sessions focused on building and maintaining positive safety cultures that shape and mold the attitudes and behaviors of all worksite
personnel. Conference participants indicated that they enjoyed the opportunity to share safety ideas and perspectives with employees from other
companies.
There are six regional teams that share in responsibility of the conference activities. The designated representatives of these regional teams
include Hal Bates, Glen Raven; Brooke Beckett, Syngenta; Omar Borders, Celanese; Tony Byrum, Nucor Steel; Bonnie Carson, WSACC; Kyle
Green, Elementis; Michael Magnuson, General Electric; Mark Pierce, Davidson County Solid Waste; Ann Robinson, Hospira; Tyler Robinson,
PGI; and Justin Scrgent, Shcrwin Williams. The Carolina Star Board of Directors recognized the team representatives for their leadership roles
as co-team leaders.
In addition, Ann Morrison, past board member and president, was recognized for her many years of service and contributions to the Carolina
Star Safety Conference Board of Directors. Finally, Leonard Mangum, Star Program coasultant, indicated that he was going to retire after 19
years of service as a state employee. As a result, Leonard was recognized and received a certificate of appreciation for his 1 5 years of dedicated
continued on page 3
Kina Repp tells her compelling story to participants at the Carolina Star
Safety Conference. Repp promotes workplace safety while sharing her story
about the day her life changed forever due to a job-related accident.
