OUR TEAM

Colonel Terry J. Ebbert

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Colonel Terry Ebbert, United States Marine Corps Retired, founded Ebbert & Associates to provide consulting, planning, training, and education in all aspects of Emergency Preparedness, Public Safety, Disaster Management and Security Matters.

Colonel Ebbert is the former Director of Homeland Security for the City of New Orleans. In this role he was responsible for the administration and leadership for all Public Safety agencies, which included Police, Fire, Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Preparedness and Criminal Justice organizations. He served as the "Incident Commander" and coordinated all local, state and federal response to New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the largest disaster in the history of the United States.

Colonel Ebbert's views on the Katrina experience have been documented in extensive federal testimony, books, articles, television, lectures, and personal sessions with the White House and Department of Homeland Security. His input has been taken into consideration in the creation of national reforms for emergency planning and operations. For his service during this disaster he received the United States Coast Guard Public Service Award, The Louisiana Legion of Merit and the American Spirit Gold Medallion.

Colonel Ebbert's previous positions have included serving as the Director of the New Orleans Police Foundation and as the Director of Security for the National Strategic Petroleum Reserve. He has also served as the Director of Security and Emergency Management for the Department of Energy National Strategic Petroleum Reserve and the Pacific Fleet Security Officer responsible for all US Ports in the Pacific. This broad experience has been vital to understand the complex issues needed to provide difficult program management and technical support issues.

Colonel Ebbert completed a distinguished career in the United States Marine Corps where he held nuclear security positions and served as Security Officer for the United States Pacific Fleet. Other assignments included serving as the Military Secretary to the Commandant of the Marine Corps and Commanding Officer of The Basic School for Marine Officers. He is the recipient of the Navy Cross, the nation's second highest award for valor for leadership actions in the Republic of Vietnam.

Colonel Ebbert currently serves as a Distinguished Visiting Fellow to Homeland Security Institute (HSI), the internal federal "Think Tank" for the Department of Homeland Security.

Security Clearance Level: Top Secret

Associations and Affiliations:
Orleans Parish Communications District (911 Communications Facility) - Board President
New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation - Executive Board Member
New Orleans Military Maritime Academy Public Charter High School - Board President
Marine Corps Support Group - Member
Legion of Valor - Member

Awards Received: 
Navy Cross – December 24, 1966
Bronze Star w/ V - May 16, 1966

William F. Ryan, Esquire

General Counsel & Secretary / Treasurer

William F. Ryan is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer and a licensed attorney practicing in Louisiana since 1975.

Mr. Ryan develops real estate, manages oil and gas interests, and various private equity investments. He received his Juris Doctorate from Tulane University (1975), an MBA from The American Graduate School for International Management (1971), and a BA from John Carroll University (1967). He presently sits on the Boards of Loyola University Business School and Communities in Schools.

Mr. Ryan has twice been chosen the U.S. Small Business Advocate of the Year (in 1984 and 1987) and was a member of the Veteran Affairs Commission for the State of Louisiana, and Chairman of the Louisiana Vietnam Veterans Memorial located at the Louisiana Superdome. He is the recipient of the Silver Star and Navy Commendation "V" for heroism in Vietnam. Mr. Ryan was in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina struck and was personally responsible for the evacuation of many residents in the hurricane's aftermath.

Medals Received: 
Silver Star Medal – May 24, 1969  
Navy Commendation Medal – May 18, 1969

Jerry W. Tate, CEM

Executive Vice President

Jerry W. Tate is a Certified Emergency Manager and the former Director of the Boulder, Colorado Office of Emergency Management. Following Hurricane Katrina, Jerry worked as an emergency planner for the New Orleans Office of Homeland Security developing the evacuation plan to assist those citizens who could not self-evacuate. This plan was later used successfully in 2008 for the evacuation of New Orleans for Hurricane Gustav.

Prior to beginning a career in emergency management in New Orleans, he spent 32 years as a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). He served as the Special Agent in Charge for the New Orleans Field Division, overseeing ATF enforcement and compliance activities in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas. Jerry held several other positions with ATF including Deputy Chief Special Operations Division; Special Agent in Charge Tactical Response Branch; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Office of Inspection; and Assistant Special Agent in Charge Washington Field Division.

Jerry served two years in Lyon, France in the Terrorism and Public Safety Section of Interpol. He is a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy and was certified by the Federal Office of Personnel Management for the Senior Executive Service (SES). Jerry is a graduate of Texas Tech University and a former Marine and Vietnam veteran.

Yvette LeMaire

Vice President - Contracts Manager

Yvette LeMaire joined the Ebbert and Associates team in June 2009 as the Vice President of Contract(s) Management and handles all public relations and marketing. Yvette brings years of significant experience managing emergency recovery operations. She is the president and founder of LeMCore Services, LLC, a logistics and consulting firm that was founded to assist contractors and property owners in rebuilding damaged properties throughout the Southeast.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Yvette managed a $5.5 million turnkey project that housed and provided essential services to over 500 contract workers and professionals rebuilding oil refineries and other critical infrastructure in the New Orleans area. The project included handling all areas of management from site maintenance and housekeeping to security services and safe entry/exit to the sites. She also provided logistical and administrative support for mass catering operations after Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.

In the wake of Hurricane Ivan, Yvette consulted with many organizations helping them to reorganize and rebuild hurricane damaged properties and businesses. Working with major construction companies, she developed homeowner build-out packages for single family homes and multi-unit condominium complexes and coordinated with multiple vendors so clients had a simple process for rebuilding damaged properties.

Yvette LeMaire holds a B.A. in Psychology from Louisiana State University (1991).