Michael St. John joined search and rescue Explorer Post 74 after seeing high school age volunteers help during a successful extended search for two young boys in Inverness in 1979. Explorer Post 74 would later evolve into the Marin County Sheriff’s SAR Unit where Michael has served as Unit Leader since 1989. Today the Marin County Sheriff’s SAR Unit has 100 volunteer members and responded to 59 missions last year throughout California. Michael played an integral role in leading the team to become a certified Mountain Rescue Team in 2004. Michael took a leading role in the development of the abduction search strategy curriculum, is a nationally recognized instructor in searching for victims of predator abductions and was recognized by the National Association of Search and Rescue in 2003 with the “State” award for his work. Michael teaches courses in abduction search operations and Search Management for the California State OES Law Enforcement Branch. He has supported the management of numerous large scale SAR missions across California, recently serving as Search Manager during the opening days of the 2018 Camp Fire human remains search. In 2019, Michael teamed up with Matt Jacobs with CALTopo to develop and teach a progressive NASAR certified Managing the Lost Person Incident Course that incorporates the latest incident management principles and technology. Michael’s Fire Service career started in 1985 as a Seasonal Firefighter and, after 33 years of service, culminated with retirement as a Battalion Chief with the Mill Valley Fire Department. Michael also served as a HAZMAT Specialist and Commander on the Marin County Hazardous Materials Response Team and remains active on the North Bay Incident Management Team. Michael served as Strike Team Leader and Division/Group Supervisor on a number of extended fire assignments that included some of California’s most destructive fires.He also remains active on the North Bay Incident Management Team, an all risk Type 3 IMT.Through his diverse professional experiences in emergency services, Michael has significant experience and expertise in a broad spectrum of emergency management fields, including major fire incidents, Hazardous Materials Operations, and large-scale search and rescue missions.