Orange Owned: On Target Preparedness

David Hesselmeyer (’02) took a difficult season and turned it into On Target Preparedness, a business dedicated to serving others affected by all types of disasters. Hesselmeyer was working for Cumberland County Government in emergency management when the economic downturn led to his unemployment. After careful thought and prayer, he began On Target Preparedness on July 1, 2011.

Hesselmeyer has a background in emergency services, graduating from Campbell University in 2002 with a degree in government and an emphasis on public administration. While he was still an undergraduate student, he was asked by Harnett County to perform a Hazardous Materials Commodity Flow Study. From there, his interest in emergency management grew, and he began working with other counties in North Carolina to help them prepare for natural disasters. On Target Preparedness stems from his desire to help his community stay ready for whatever life brings their way. Currently, he serves as a volunteer EMT at Buies Creek Fire Department, as well as an adjunct instructor at Campbell University, where he stays connected to the Campbell community.

“Our mission is to assist all agencies to be better prepared, to plan for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate any and all types of disasters that may affect them or their clients. We work to ensure that clients are properly trained, plans are well written, exercises have been completed to test their staff and plans, and many other aspects in order to be as prepared as possible for disasters,” Hesselmeyer said of On Target Preparedness.

Hesselmeyer has grown through the last eight years of business management, and one of the most important things he has learned is how to assemble a cooperative and caring team. “You can work to share your passion with others and give them the tools that they need to succeed. However, you cannot make someone become passionate and care about their work,” Hesselmeyer said. “To overcome this, my staff and I have developed a multi-pronged approach to get to know a candidate before we hire them. This has been very successful, as we know more about their true strengths and weaknesses before we hire them and ensure we give them every tool we can to succeed.”

Hesselmeyer and his team are excited to join Orange Owned and become a part of the newest program to connect Campbell alumni. “I like the idea of Orange Owned and I think that it has several areas of potential assistance,” Hesselmeyer said. “By having such a program, if I am in need of certain services, I can find a Campbell graduate with a business that provides the service I need.” Hesselmeyer also added that he hopes this program will both raise awareness of On Target Preparedness, as well as the need for emergency preparation in his community. “Please take the time to prepare – there are so many things that you can do to be prepared that are not expensive and could potentially save a life. My staff and I would be more than happy to speak to anyone who is interested in preparedness,” he said.

Hesselmeyer is now a part of the first Orange Owned business owners, which he considers a beneficial opportunity. “I think it is very important to be involved,” he said. “To me, this program is set to help the alumni in succeeding. It helps the University to succeed by being able to highlight the successes of the alumni. This is just an all-around good idea to be involved with and I am honored to be able to be part of it as it begins.”

David Hesselmeyer (’02 ) is the owner and primary consultant at On Target Preparedness. Learn more about how to stay prepared with On Target Preparedness at www.ontargetprep.com.

For more information on the Orange Owned recognition program visit alumni.campbell.edu/orange-owned.