World Wide Technology Honored by Maryland Heights Fire Protection District

ST. LOUIS -- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- World Wide Technology, Inc. (WWT), a market-leading systems integrator that provides innovative technology and supply chain solutions, today announced it has been honored for its support of the Maryland Heights Fire Protection District and the St. Louis Metropolitan Urban Search and Rescue System. WWT has generously provided warehousing space and logistical services at no cost to both organizations for several years, helping them to protect valuable assets, better respond in times of emergency, and support continual training efforts.

“We are honored to be able to aid and support our brave first responders in protecting our surrounding communities,” said WWT’s co-founder and chairman David L. Steward. “We fully intend to continue this partnership for as long as we can.”

The Maryland Heights Fire Protection District and St. Louis Metropolitan Urban Search and Rescue System hosted a special ceremony for WWT to express their appreciation for WWT’s support and contributions, during which Chief Steve Olshwanger and Deputy Chief Steve Rinehart named WWT’s co-founder and chairman David L. Steward as Honorary Chief of the District. Mr. Steward was presented with a white leather fire helmet and gold leaf shield. Justin Reise and Brian Nelson of WWT, who helped to initiate the project, were each presented with a brass fire bell.

Letters of recognition were also given to Steward, Reise and Nelson during the ceremony, which stated, “Mr. Steward committed his support and since has provided the Maryland Heights Fire Protection District and the St. Louis Metropolitan Urban Search and Rescue System with logistical support beyond our expectations. Mr. Steward’s vision of success and leadership extends beyond his organization and reaches to the communities that surround it. Mr. Reise and Mr. Nelson recognized the need for support and acted on it. It is that vision and action that we are here to recognize today.”

The St. Louis Metropolitan Urban Search and Rescue System utilizes the space donated by WWT to maintain vehicles and equipment indoors and out of the elements for faster response times in emergency situations. The Fire Department has 24 x 7 access to the WWT-maintained facility, which is located less than a mile from their station. In addition, WWT has and continues to provide warehouse space for rescue training to both the Maryland Heights Fire and Police Departments.

This partnership with WWT has enabled the Maryland Heights Fire Protection District to have assets “at the ready” for several emergency situations, including the 2011 February snow and ice storm, the Good Friday F4 tornado that hit the immediate Maryland Heights area, and the tragic F5 tornado that hit Joplin last spring.

About Maryland Heights Fire Protection District

The Maryland Heights Fire Protection District encompasses eighteen square miles of St. Louis County, Missouri. Formally organized by a vote of the people in April 1949 under Missouri State Statute, the district is a political subdivision of the State of Missouri and pre-dates the City of Maryland Heights by more than thirty-five years. A three-member Board of Directors, elected by district residents, governs the district. The fire district employs forty-four line employees, four chief officers, a fire inspector and one administrative assistant. The district’s services include fire suppression, emergency medical services, specialized rescue (technical, collapse/trench, extrication, water) and hazardous materials response. In addition, the district also has a very active community education program that includes public fire education, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and first aid. Learn more at www.mhfire.org.

About WWT

World Wide Technology, Inc. (WWT) is a systems integrator that provides innovative technology and supply chain solutions to the commercial, government and telecom sectors. The company brings to market a powerful blend of knowledge, infrastructure and technology to help its customers manage the planning, procurement and deployment of IT products and solutions. Based in St. Louis, WWT works closely with industry leaders including Boeing (NYSE: BA); Dell (NASDAQ: DELL); Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO); EMC (NYSE: EMC); HP (NYSE: HPQ); AT&T Inc. (NYSE: ATT); VMware (NYSE: VMW); Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS); NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP); Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT); and the U.S. Air Force. WWT employs over 1,700 people and operates more than 2 million square-feet of warehousing, distribution and integration space in 20 facilities throughout the world. For more information on World Wide Technology, visit www.wwt.com.