FORT GORDON, Ga. -- The Fort Gordon Adolphus Greely Chapter of the Signal Corps Regimental Association honored local teens and several Signaleers before the annual Signal Corps Ball held June 24 at the Marriott Augusta Hotel and Suites in downtown Augusta.
Maj. Gen. Alan R. Lynn, U.S. Army Signal Center of Excellence and Fort Gordon commander and Chief of Signal, presented the Silver Order of Mercury to Jimmy “Jay” Jennings. It’s the Signal Corps Regimental Association’s highest award and is given to people who stand above their peers and have made conspicuous long-term significant contributions to the U.S. Army Signal Corps and the Signal Regimental Association. Jennings is the SCRA Adolphus Greely Chapter secretary and treasurer.
Maj. Indira Donegan, Capt. Joseph Smith, 1st Sgt. Keyshawn Kittles-Joyner, 1st Sgt. Bart Larango, Master Sgt. Thomas Wilson, Sgt. 1st Class Daniel Geurtsen and Staff Sgt. Joshua Brandt received the second highest SCRA award - the Bronze Order of Mercury.
Jackie Smith received the Silver Wahatchee award. The Wahatchee Award, named for Georgia patriot Nancy Hart, is a Signal Corps award given to people who exemplify the volunteer spirit and have given long-term service improving the Signal Corps community. Smith, the Fort Gordon Volunteer of the Quarter for the first quarter of 2011, is the 369th Expeditionary Signal Battalion’s Family Readiness Group Leader and Assistance Battalion Family Support Group Leader.
Four local teens also received checks in the amount of $1,000 each to help defray future college expenses. Each year, the Fort Gordon Adolphus Greely Chapter of the Signal Corps Regimental Association awards four $1,000 scholarships to deserving recipients of the Augusta and Fort Gordon area. The first scholarship, named in honor of the late Lt. Col. Jeanne E. Hutchison, former 551st Signal Battalion commander at Fort Gordon and at the time of her death, the 2nd Regimental Tactical Officer for the Corps of Cadets at the United State Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., was awarded to Morgan Tuschen. The Evans High School graduate will be studying civil engineering at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Ga, this fall. Hutchison’s husband, retired Lt. Col. Robert Hutchison, congratulated Tuschen following the award presentation. Tuschen was accompanied by her mother, Amy.
Shey Boyd was awarded the Command Sgt. Maj. Ray D. Lane Scholarship. Lane died after a brief illness March 4, 2010 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. The Hephzibah High School graduate plans to major in finance at Georgia Military College in Milledgeville, Ga. She was accompanied by her mother, Ebony, and her stepfather Chris.
Collin Segura, a graduate of Augusta Preparatory Day School, received the Sgt. 1st Class Robert E. Dunham Scholarship. Dunham, assigned to 1st Brigade Transition Team and attached to the 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kansas, died May 24, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds sustained when an Improvised Explosive Device detonated near his vehicle. Segura will be studying political economics and government at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. this fall. He was accompanied to the award ceremony by his mother, Leasa.
Brittnee Lett, a graduate of the John S. Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School in Augusta, will be studying biology at the University of Georgia this fall with aspirations of becoming an Obstetrics and Gynecology physician. She received the Staff Sgt. Justin M. DeCrow Scholarship. DeCrow was tragically killed in the Nov. 5, 2010 shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas. Lett was accompanied by her mother Ulonda.
The students were selected for the scholarships based on academic achievement, letters of recommendations, and a written essay. The scholarships were made possible by several fundraising events conducted by the Fort Gordon Adolphus Greely Chapter of the SCRA.
The general explained the reason he recognized each of the Signaleers during a private ceremony held minutes before the Signal Ball began that evening. “I wanted you to be able to wear the [award] medallions for the entire evening not just an hour,” said Lynn. “Thank you for what you have done for the Signal Corps. You have changed people’s lives and impacted several hundreds of Soldiers.”
Both SCRA awardees and scholarship recipients also received formal recognition during the Signal Corps Ball.
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