Our Team
Richard M. Smith, Jr.
CEO & Chief Consultant
Richard Smith is a former United States Marine who joined the San Antonio Police Department in September of 1989. He has been assigned to the Patrol Division, Training Academy, and the Tactical Response Unit, and the Special Operations Unit, where he was assigned as a full time Hostage Negotiator and as the San Antonio Police Department Tactical Medic Program’s Coordinator. Richard has participated in hundreds of critical incidents, and has been the Primary Negotiator in many of those incidents.
He is also a national and international media consultant.
As President of Con10gency, Katherine is responsible for planning, development, and implementation of the company’s strategic direction in close concert with Con10gency CEO, Richard M. Smith, Jr. Katherine also works closely with the Con10gency sales team to drive business development, growth, and improvement in accordance with overall corporate strategy while ensuring the organization achieves strategic goals at the optimum pace.
Katherine Pankratz
President
Robert King, National Director of Training for Con10gency, is responsible for evolution of the C.A.L.M. Approach™ and other Con10gency course offerings in addition to creation and execution of strategies to expand the organization’s training footprint nationwide. King retired as Commander of the North Precinct for the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) in 2018, having worked with the Bureau for over 27 years, before transitioning to a role in the office of Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler in April 2019. He joined Con10gency in July of 2021 in support of a personal mission to improve training, survivability, and knowledge of law enforcement for the betterment of themselves, their department, and the wider community.
Robert King
National Director of Training
Justin has been a Firefighter and Paramedic since 2009, at which time he joined the San Antonio Fire Department (SAFD). He spent three years at the department’s busiest dedicated ALS station prior to moving into the EMS Division. Justin served as a member of SAFD’s Medical Special Operations Unit, specializing in Tactical Medicine and working under an advanced scope of practice. He is a Rescue Task Force instructor for SAFD and was heavily involved in the development of SAFD’s MedCat program, a first of its kind program in the nation. He also served as a Medical Training Officer and member of the Medical Strike Team, tasked with deploying to critical incidents around the region and across the state of Texas. Justin has worked suburban and rural EMS with the City of Schertz EMS, as well as having experience with inter-facility and critical-care transports. Justin currently serves at the SAFD Training Academy as the Professional Development Lieutenant.
Justin Smith
Senior Consultant & NAEMT Coordinator
Dr. Orlando Beckum, MD
Dr. Orlando Beckum, M.D., attended undergraduate school at the University of North Texas in Denton, TX and attended medical school at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Texas (UTMB). He continued his education through residency in General Surgery at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA. Later, he returned to UTMB and matriculated through the Burn Surgery Intensive Care Fellowship in conjunction with the Block Burn Unit and Shriner’s Hospital for Children. He was also granted a fellowship with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and also served as Research Fellow with the Anesthesiology Department of UTMB at Galveston.
Following the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, Dr. Beckum began working in Emergency Medicine in the State of Mississippi to assist affected areas during hurricane recovery. He then continued working in Emergency Medicine in the State of Texas where he served as Trauma Medical Director in Sweeny Community Hospital and Memorial Medical Center in Port Lavaca, TX.
Currently, Dr. Beckum serves multiple communities in the State of Texas as an Emergency Medicine Attending Physician as well as the Director for Peer Review at Texas A&M Rural Community Health Institute.
Medical Director
Instructors
Our instructors are certified law enforcement, fire, or EMS personnel who have all completed NAEMT TCCC instructor training. They're also seasoned professionals with decades of experience, and most are active first responders within their local communities. It's a safe bet that one of the individuals below is teaching a Con10gency class somewhere in the U.S. on any given day.
George Jahant, Lead Instructor
George Jahant retired from the San Antonio Police Department in 2016, where he served for 38 years. George worked in Patrol and Evidence & Narcotics, but his career focus was Special Operations (SWAT, Negotiations, and Tactical Medicine). With over 31 years of training and experience in Critical Incident skills and management, he applied his knowledge, talent, and efforts to help form one of the top Special Operations Programs in the United States. He participated in successfully executing thousands of high-risk incidents and warrants. George used these experiences to train law enforcement, military, and civilian personnel in all aspects of conflict and threat management.
Brandon Reck, Lead Instructor
Brandon Reck is originally from Fontana, California. He received his initial EMT certification from Mt. San Antonio College in Los Angeles county. Soon afterward, Brandon enlisted into active duty military service as a Navy Corpsman in 2007. Upon completion of Naval Hospital Corps School in Great Lakes, Illinois, he transferred to Camp Pendleton, California where he attended Field Medical Training Battalion-West. Immediately after, he was assigned to School of Infantry-West in support of Marine Corps combat training. While stationed on board Camp Pendleton, he was transferred to 1st Marine Division and attached to various infantry battalions as a field Corpsman. During his time at Camp Pendleton, he deployed with 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU Special Operations Capable) where he participated in multi-national training exercises, humanitarian assistance and combat trauma courses with host nations military forces throughout Asia Pacific.
Our mission continues in honor of our founding medical director, Dr. Craig Manifold, who passed away suddenly in September 2020.
In Memoriam
Dr. Craig A. Manifold served as the EMS Medical Director for ground, helicopter, critical care, tactical, fire based, third service, hospital based, private and not for profit agencies in Bexar County and South Texas, including San Antonio Police Department Tactical Medical team and Bulverde Spring Branch EMS.. He also served as Assistant Professor in the Department of Emergency Health Sciences, School of Health Professions at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.
His career in emergency medicine started as a volunteer EMT Firefighter in his hometown of Stewartstown, PA. He enlisted as a medic in the US Air Force and transitioned to aeromedical evacuation instructor duties. He attended the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and continued his training in Emergency Medicine with his Internship at Wilford Hall Medical Center, San Antonio, Texas and his Residency with the Joint Military Medical Centers Emergency Medicine Residency in San Antonio, Texas. After service with the US Air Force and deployments including OPERATIONS Southern Watch, Noble Eagle, and Enduring Freedom, he transitioned to civilian emergency medicine in San Antonio, Texas. Dr. Manifold is most recently served as EMS Committee Chair; American College of Emergency Physicians, EMS Medical Directors Committee, Governors EMS and Trauma Advisory Committee (GETAC) and on several committees with the South Texas Regional Advisory Council (STRAC). Dr Manifold was also a board member of the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT). Colonel Manifold continued his military service as Joint Surgeon (Senior Physician) for the Texas National Guard until his unexpected passing in September 2020.
Dr. Manifold was board certified in emergency medicine and emergency medical services. He presented at many national and international conferences and has several publications.