FORT BELVOIR, Va. - Fort Belvoir has been undergoing lots of change in recent years with the implementation of Base Realignment and Closure, renovations, construction and other normal day-to-day operations.
As the director of public works, Bill Sanders has been instrumental in those changes and upgrades to Belvoir, since he arrived in 2004.
For his efforts, Sanders was recently named a winner in the U.S. Army Installation Management Command's 2009 DPW Annual Awards Program as the William C. Griggle DPW Executive of the Year.
Each year, these awards provide leaders with the opportunity to recognize individuals who demonstrate excellence in support to readiness, Soldiers and their families through the management and execution of the installation public works and real property missions.
"I feel very honored that the garrison, Mr. [David] Hale, Col. [Mark] Moffatt and others in the directorate would spend the time and think enough of me to nominate me," Sanders said. "I think it also reflects very well on the Fort Belvoir DPW. The directorate, not the director, but the directorate. I have a phenomenal group here and they do much more than can be expected.
"We are not a very large organization, but we are placing $4.4 million of construction, daily. We have done environmental clean up in excess of $50 million," Sanders said. "We are supporting the Fairfax County Parkway extension that is currently under construction and had been in the planning stages for decades."
Sanders graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1974 and, upon graduation, was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He spent three and a half of his four active-duty years in Germany with the 249th Engineering Battalion.
Before arriving at Belvoir in June 2004, Sanders had served as the deputy director of DPW in Heidelberg, Germany; chief of engineering for the Military District of Washington; and IMCOM chief of master planning for the Northeast Region.
Since his arrival, Sanders has seen the BRAC changes and is optimistic about what they will bring to the installation.
"With all that's going on with BRAC on post, among many other projects, I firmly believe that this installation will be a much better place, due to this all this work," Sanders said. "A lot of the road projects, though they are a mess today, will allow people to enter and exit post faster than they have in many years."
David Hale, Sanders' deputy director at DPW since he arrived in 2004, said that working for Sanders has been a great experience and his leadership has been instrumental in the success of the ongoing projects at Belvoir.
"With everything that has been going on at Belvoir with BRAC, this is kind of his background as a programmer and he knows how to get projects in the system," Hale said. "Because of his knowledge and ability to do that, we are able to get a lot of stuff through the system. A lot of people respect Bill and his experience at the headquarters level allows him to see the big picture.
"He is the kind of leader that wants people to be able to do their job and lets them do their job, so, as his employee, you have the freedom to get out and get the job done and he provides the resources to make that possible," Hale said.
Installation Commander Col. Jerry Blixt said Sanders' desire and talent have been essential to his success.
"Bill's exceptional talent as a senior engineer and unrelenting desire to help Soldiers, families and civilians has allowed him to remain dedicated to bringing the best solutions for Belvoir to the forefront," Blixt said. "I always think of three redeeming qualities with Bill - extraordinary dedication, a true desire for all things regarding Fort Belvoir, and a passion for helping Soldiers, families and civilians.
"At Fort Belvoir, our normal workload with BRAC and transformation can be overwhelming for some, but Bill has the capacity to stay focused as our senior engineer," Blixt said.
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