Team

Founder/Managing Partner

David C. Sawyer, CPP began his career over 40 years ago, in the private security industry in 1977. He has been assisting a wide variety of clientele in creating safer places ever since. Before starting Safer Places in 2004, he held various leadership positions including Vice President, Security with a national property management company and Sr. Vice President, Administration with a full service contract security agency. He is board certified in security management, having received his Certified Protection Professional (CPP) credentials in 1987 from ASIS International.

David’s passion is in partnering with employers, business owners, volunteer organizations, landlords and others to facilitate safer places. Whether it is helping a client to unravel the mysteries of background screening so they can make intelligent choices when choosing a screening program, developing security policies, plans and procedures or negotiating a guard services contract, David is passionate about creating safer places.

Stephen M. Bukoski joined the Safer Places team with one goal in mind, to assist clients in the use of technology to create safer places. Stephen leverages his past experience as a sales and design engineer to help his clients thoroughly evaluate the variety of products available in today’s market, matching technology with project objectives and budget. Stephen’s background as a project engineer for a large national security integrator as well as manager of engineering for a regional security systems provider makes him an asset to his clients in the design and implementation of security systems.

Purchasing a camera surveillance system or electronic access control system should not be a purchasing decision made without expert advice. Relying on a salesperson, with a profit motive, can lead to disappointing results and the potential for expensive mistakes. Steve’s passion is to understand a client’s objectives, design a system to meet those goals, find qualified contractors to do the work and ensure the project is completed on time and within budget.

Joana A. Sousa joined the Safer Places team as a Project Manager to assist with the design process of security systems. Ranging from large and incredibly complex to small and straightforward, Joana starts each project by gaining a thorough understanding of each client’s security needs and objectives. She leverages her years of experience as a Project Manager and Project/Design Engineer to help clients create the systems that will achieve their goals.

Attention to detail, on-time completion and always keeping the client’s budget in mind are the hallmarks of Joana’s continued success. Her expertise in Computer-Aided Design (CAD) has
added much depth to what Safer Places offers its clients and the contractors with whom we work on their behalf. Joana’s passion is to take a project from concept to design and see it through to completion, knowing that it will perform to the standards our clients expect.

Julie A. Burke is our Administrative Assistant and like so many in similar positions, her duties include “getting IT done.” And by “it,” we mean whatever needs doing, and that’s a lot. If she happens to answer the phone when you call, I’m sure you will notice her smile (yes, even on the phone) as well as her eagerness to assist you. Julie brings her organizational skills and “can do” attitude to work with her every day, and is instrumental in tracking our projects, getting out the invoices and keeping communication flowing between our consultants and our clients.

Julie attended Norfolk County Agricultural School where she studied plant science so if your green thumb isn’t so green lately, maybe Julie will share some of her knowledge with you! Feel free to ask.

Eric Peach is the latest addition to our team and brings with him field experience as a low-voltage
electrical technician, installing access control, video and other wireless networks. Eric holds certifications on a myriad of security products and uses that knowledge in assisting clients with security systems design and integration as well as customer training.

Eric’s experience and training, along with his strong desire to learn and keep abreast of the latest changes in technology and best practices are the primary reasons we are so pleased to welcome Eric to the Safer Places team and introduce him to our clients.