While a career in a specific profession may seem destined to happen for someone, sometimes it’s not what they initially envisioned and Dennis Brazil was no different. Instead, he saw himself involved in a field rooted in his upbringing: Agriculture.
Growing up in Los Banos, Brazil, he was one of four siblings. He and his brother were involved with their family’s business, Brazil Hay Express, a trucking company that focuses on providing high-quality hay. Both of them handled a multitude of tasks including driving trucks, handling forklift equipment, and hauling hay and alfalfa for dairies and cattle. He worked at Brazil Hay Express until 1990 and joined Kagome USA as the Operations Manager.
It seemed that Brazil had his career path set but when he later moved to Gustine, he was presented with an opportunity from then-Mayor Rich Ford. Ford, who is also a current Gustine City Council member, told Brazil that he did not plan on running for mayor in 2010.
“He’s really the one that came and told me that he was not going to run for mayor, that he was done and doing to take a break. He said, ‘I think you should run.’ And I said, ‘No not me. I’m not interested in doing it,’” Brazil said.
After initially declining to run for mayor, Brazil eventually changed his mind.
“As a little bit of time passed, I had some people in the community reach out about it in Gustine and a couple of the current council members at the time. So, I said, ‘You know what? I’ll give it a try.’ And as they said, the rest is history,” Brazil said.
After receiving nearly 63% of the overall vote in 2010, Brazil was elected Mayor of Gustine, starting his political career and involvement within multiple local governments.
Fast forward to the present day and Brazil recently resigned as Board President of the Westside Community Ambulance board, ushering in a new era for the West Side Community Healthcare District. Brazil had to resign because he moved out of his district boundaries.
An election of officers in an upcoming meeting on Monday will determine who will take over the vacant board member positions including Board President.
Brazil joined the Westside Community Ambulance Board in 2018 to help the district get back on track. During his tenure as Gustine's Mayor, he felt the district needed leadership to combat some of its issues. Brazil mentioned that the district’s financial future was in question and wanted to find every possible cost-saving measure.
“The district was not doing good financially and we were operating on a shoestring budget,” Brazil said.
According to data from the California State Controller’s Office website, the West Side Community Healthcare District overspent past its annual revenue five times between 2012 and 2017.
The biggest differential between revenue and expenditure was in 2016 when the district overspent generated revenue by $420,000. Out of the $2.07 million spent, $962,582 went toward salary and wages, $473,068 was spent on services and supplies, $343,256 was contributed to employee benefits, $277,863 was spent on general and special revenue funds and the remaining $8,621 were contributed to fixed assets.
When Brazil took over as board president in 2019, some notable actions during his tenure included finalizing a union contract, updating the district policy manual and procedures and handling the shortage of first responders.
Throughout all the years that Brazil remained on the board, the district recorded its highest revenue in 2022, at $2.59 million. The revenue’s biggest contributor was Charges for Services, which generated $1.49 million.
Brazil said he was satisfied with the changes during his tenure, except for not getting Measure A, which focused on providing ambulance services in rural areas within the West Side Community Healthcare District, to go through.
“Everything but the measure was accomplished, and it’s unfortunate because the district is really going to suffer if we can’t figure out a way to get the financials balanced,” Brazil said.
Brazil is not the only board member who’s concerned about the district’s future following Measure A not passing. Kenneth Helms said it’s a big deal if there are not enough ambulances on the Westside.
“I mean, you’re talking, 20-30 minutes plus,” Helms said.
With a new board set to take over, Brazil advised every member to understand the importance of being on the Westside Community Ambulance board.
“When you raise your right hand and you take that oath, listen to those words very carefully because that’s what you were elected for, to serve the people and to serve under oath,” Brazil said. “If you get on a board and you don’t do that, pretty tough to look at yourself in the mirror every day.”
