The Better Men Better World Search

Tad Agoglia is the Founder and CEO of The First Response Team of America, a non-profit, nomadic crew of response workers operating a fleet of emergency vehicles that provides immediate, emergency aid to areas hit by disasters. Since May 2007, the team has helped tens of thousands of victims at 30 disaster sites across the United States and Haiti and has rapidly become a recognized name in first responder aid.

Before creating the FRTA, Tad owned a lucrative business conducting large-scale disaster recovery and clean-up at catastrophe sites, until the day he decided to offer his services for free—turning his company into a non-profit with his own life savings. “I recognized a crisis of need in this country and I couldn’t ignore it,” Tad explains. Since then, with the help of caring corporate sponsors and individual donors, Tad has built a unique task force of highly specialized staff and equipment that can quickly and efficiently be on the scene of a disaster anywhere in the country.

Tad was taught at a young age to love as you want to be loved and to help when you can. He also learned that bad things happen in life, many of which are beyond our control, but the attitude with which we face these challenges makes all the difference. He has always chosen to respond to hope-and that is his inspiration for the First Response Team.

He feels that as Americans, we have abundant resources and know-how - and what better way to put them to use than by reaching out to our neighbors in what could be their greatest hour of need? When disaster strikes, the team quickly and compassionately delivers the kind of help we would want for our own families and communities.

His work has been recognized by the 2008 CNN Heroes program and People Magazine’s Hero Among Us. This year he received the National Jefferson Awards' highest honor for the Greatest Public Service by an individual 35 or under.

To learn more about the organization Tad champions, visit firstresponseteam.org.