Gloucester County’s Deputy County Administrator George Bains was recently awarded the Julian F. Hirst Award for Distinguished Service by the Hampton Roads Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration.

The award is given each year to a Hampton Roads-area public administrator that demonstrates an exceptional record of public service. Bains has 35+ years of public sector experience, and a rich history of service to the Gloucester community.

He has risen through the ranks of local government, starting out as Gloucester’s Director of Engineering, where he helped develop and implement the County’s Enhanced 9-1-1 system. He was also an integral player in developing Gloucester’s Geographic Information and Public Utilities systems.

Bains went on to serve as the County’s first Director of Information Technology from 1995 to 2011 and was instrumental in creating the IT department. After a stint with Henrico County serving as its Assistant Director of Information Technology,...