REDSTONE ARSENAL, Alabama -- Three employees have been named Civilians of the Year as they strive to be the best at supporting those defending the high ground.
The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command selected the following three individuals to be named its 2016 Civilians of the Year: KumCha Bertling, USASMDC/ARSTRAT G-1 program analyst, for supporting staff category; Michael S. Owings, SMDC Future Warfare Center military analyst, for the professional/technical category; and Iwalani E. Gutierrez, SMDC G-6, Regional Satellite Support Center-Pacific director, for the technical/technical management category.
As the command's Civilians of the Year, they will also be the nominees for Association of the U.S. Army Redstone-Huntsville Chapter's Department of the Army Civilian of the Year Award.
"Please help me congratulate our 2016 SMDC Civilians of the Year. They will be recognized in our April town halls," said Lt. Gen. David L. Mann, SMDC commanding general. "These individuals were nominated by their supervisors and were selected by a panel made up of personnel across the command. Congratulations to our Civilians of the Year, and thank you for your support to the Warfighter."
Bertling is active in supporting the command's Army Family Action Plan, Combined Federal Campaign and Army Emergency Relief programs. She assists with SMDC's Military Spouse Appreciation Day receptions. She is also active in the command's Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program.
She collects care packages to send to the command's deployed Soldiers serving in Kuwait and Afghanistan. She also currently serves as secretary for the Legacy 4 Korean War Veterans Foundation.
"Words cannot express how I feel," Bertling said. "It is a tremendous honor to be recognized as Civilian of the Year. I owe all to God and my husband, Sam. I also owe to the many people who helped me with my work as professional and as volunteer. I feel honored and privileged to represent our command. I will continue to volunteer in the community, support Veterans, share resources and be available to people who need my help."
Owings was named in part for what he and his team accomplished in the Future Warfare Center mission to develop, demonstrate and deliver capabilities to meet Warfighter needs by planning for, coordinating and executing the integration and operational acceptance of a modular enhancement to the Mobile Integrated Ground System, which was immediately deployed with operational forces. Owings' efforts extend to deployed forces as well, where he has repeatedly traveled to austere locations to ensure Soldiers are equipped, trained and ready to perform assigned missions.
His contributions across the space superiority mission area have paved the way for the command to achieve great successes across all aspects of doctrine, organization, training, materiel, logistics, personnel and facilities. Efficiencies and critical reviews of resources have resulted in synergistic momentum to advance the command's ability to meet U.S. Strategic Command mission needs.
Owings also participates in local coordination and development activities with his local chamber of commerce and library district.
"I am incredibly honored to have been named as one of the SMDC Civilians of the Year, but I want to highlight that this award would not be possible without the entire team of outstanding individuals that I am privileged to work with," Owings said. "I am humbled to represent this command that I have served for 11 years while on active duty, Reserves and now as a civilian. I see it as recognition of a larger team and am excited to contribute to the unique mission areas in support of USSTRATCOM and the U.S. Army."
Gutierrez's leadership and contributions to the command include adapting to changing environments as potentially dangerous Hurricanes Iselle and Julio and Tropical Storm Ana threatened her mission and the safety of her employees. She ensured uninterrupted support to U.S. Pacific Command, Australia and New Zealand, while ensuring personnel safety.
Gutierrez requested a Command Climate Survey for her organization in order to improve her situational awareness of Soldier and civilian issues and well-being within the organization. Her organization recently received a letter of thanks from the assistant chief of staff, G-6, 25th Infantry Division for their outstanding satellite communications, or SATCOM, technical and planning support during Cobra Gold in Thailand in April 2015.
Gutierrez volunteers to prepare and deliver food to more than 40 local families in need. In addition, through her POW newsletter, she encourages others to connect with the community through local events.
"I feel honored to be the SMDC Civilian of the Year," Gutierrez said. "Overseeing the talented team of professionals here at the Regional Satellite Support Center-Pacific, as part of the SMDC workforce, is a privilege for me. I feel honored and incredibly grateful. I want to truly reflect SMDC's vision here in the work we do for our Warfighters. We're very fortunate to have an excellent rapport with our user community at USPACOM, the Australian Defence Force and the New Zealand Defence Force.
"Admittedly, it's no easy task to meet the growing demand for SATCOM resources needed by our deployed and garrison forces but we are proactive in our engagement," she continued. "The team here strives with an earnest approach to excel in our work while also being mindful stewards of our resources. I believe our efforts incorporate a readiness and operational focus; thinking about how we will contribute to the 'fight.'"
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