FORT CAVAZOS, Texas — After being named the best garrison by Installation Management Command, Fort Cavazos earned yet another accolade on July 2 — the Commander-in-Chief’s Annual Award for Installation Excellence.
The award is given in praise of the hard work and accomplishments of those who operate and maintain military installations.
“This award recognizes the incredible work our garrison team does day in and day out to ensure that Fort Cavazos Soldiers and their families are well cared for while they serve our country,” said Lt. Gen. Sean C. Bernabe, commanding general of III Armored Corps and Fort Cavazos. “We could not do what we do here at The Great Place without the dozens of Soldiers and over 4,000 Department of the Army civilians who comprise the garrison team. I’m honored to be a part of Team Cavazos.”
When choosing which installation will win the Installation Excellence Award, 13 categories are considered including mission support, environment, real property asset management, real property stewardship, quality of life and safety and protection.
Donna Tomsic, lead management analyst for the Plans, Analysis and Integration Office, gathers a list of accomplishments from each directorate at The Great Place and condenses them all into a packet. She has created this same packet at Fort Cavazos for the last five years and said in her opinion the areas Fort Cavazos stood out in this year were fiscal stewardship and service culture.
“We initiated three new cost-saving intergovernmental support agreements: repair and maintenance with TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation), stray animal control with the city of Killeen and water delivery with the city of Gatesville,” she shared. “We gained valued points in service culture with an enhanced on-boarding program and improved professional development opportunities.”
She said it’s incredibly satisfying for those who work on the packet to be submitted to have earned the Installation Excellence Award.
“It feels good when you finally win,” she said.
Directorate of Public Works
The Directorate of Public Works was highlighted for many things, including the environmental research and conservation efforts made by the Environmental Division and the Operations and Maintenance Division’s efforts in generally staying above the 95th percentile in technical sufficiency and customer satisfaction.
“We are very fortunate to have an exceptional team of very dedicated employees led by experienced and caring leaders,” said Brian Dosa, director of DPW. “Our team is motivated by the mission of caring for Soldiers and families, and helping units build readiness. We get great satisfaction from accomplishing things in support of Fort Cavazos every day.”
Dosa said DPW is committed to the environmental conservation and resilience of Fort Cavazos, not only because it is the right thing to do, but because it also ensures Soldiers will be able to train at The Great Place in the years to come.
“We must be good stewards for the resources we have been given, both money and land, facilities, and infrastructure,” he said. “We are also working to build energy and water resilience — that is to be able to continue our critical missions in the event of a natural disaster or terrorist attack that might impact our power or water supply.”
Dosa praised the Operations and Maintenance Division saying though they face challenges of being understaffed and are at the mercy of the supply chain for repair parts, they do great work maintaining the facilities and infrastructure at Fort Cavazos by making repairs and doing preventative maintenance.
“I believe they are motivated in serving Soldiers, families and units and understand the very important role they play at Fort Cavazos,” he said of the Operations and Maintenance Division employees. “ In addition, our leaders have done a really great job investing in our employee’s health and safety, professional development and work-life balance.”
The environmental and maintenance efforts are just a small portion of what DPW does across Fort Cavazos. Dosa said none of it would be possible without those who work in the background to manage funding, take care of DPW employees, keep DPW’s systems up and running, purchase supplies and repair parts and manage their systems.
“I am incredibly proud to be part of the DPW and garrison team,” Dosa said. “The accomplishments of our team are astounding. Some are visible like new family housing, renovated barracks, and Barracks 100, but others may go unnoticed, like preventive maintenance, landscaping, custodial, trash and recycling. But all are significant and have helped make The Great Place what it is today. And we have many more projects planned that will greatly benefit our Soldiers and families in the years to come.”
Directorate of Emergency Services
The Directorate of Emergency Services was highlighted for its award winning partnerships with the Killeen Fire Department and the Emergency Management Working Group.
Not only did the partnerships help to reduce the need for an additional fire station at Fort Cavazos to cover non-contiguous housing areas and provide no-cost training and experience for EM responses, respectively, but they both won the 2022 Army Community Partnership Award.
“It’s a great partnership (with Killeen Fire Department), and it helps us combine our resources,” said Robert “Bob” Adams, deputy director of DES. “…It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement that we have with each other so that we can help provide better response to the community, and then it helps pool our resources so that we can meet the mission.
“(The EM Working Group) enhances our readiness,” Adams continued. “But it also enhances our cooperation so that our interoperability is much greater. Because when we work together on a habitual basis, we’re not meeting each other for the first time during an emergency. So we build relationships with all of our community partners so that when something happens, we already know who to call; we know who to talk to.”
DES regularly meets with its partners, through working lunches, exercises, trainings and more to maintain the relationship but also to enhance collaboration and cohesion.
“I’m proud of the team,” Adams said of his directorate. “They are always working hard. … Everybody works hard to make sure that we continue to serve Fort Cavazos the best we can. We want to do right by the community so we have a hard-working bunch of people over trying to make it happen.”
Directorate of Human Resources
The Fort Cavazos Directorate of Human Resources was recognized for its excellence in maintaining and training a healthy workforce. Its efforts include fostering a robust set of programs for employee health and development for the garrison such as the Workforce Development program, the Military Personnel Division, the Army Substance Abuse Program, Education Services Division and Transition Assistance Program. Their office oversees services and support provided to Soldiers and families assigned to Fort Cavazos, as well as veterans and retirees living and working across 175 counties in Texas. The program has been led by Director Lorri A. Golya since August 2019.
“I have spent a lot of time at Fort Cavazos both in uniform and out, as have many members of my team and that of the garrison team,” Golya said. “We have all chosen Fort Cavazos as where we want to be. It’s extremely gratifying to know that Fort Cavazos has been recognized as the best in IMCOM. I think we have always believed that to be true — which is why we are here, and now it’s official.
“The DHR is responsible for several military personnel programs and services on the installation, and we support thousands of Soldiers, families, civilians, retirees and veterans every day,” Golya continued. “I have a great team that does great things every single day. I couldn’t be prouder of my DHR team, and we are all proud of being part of this installation’s great team at The Great Place. Together, we do amazing things.”
Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation
The Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation supported and continues to support Army readiness and quality of life with Child and Youth Services, or CYS, Army Community Service, events and more.
Several notable events included Freedom Fest, Cowboys-4-Heroes/Bumpers and BBQ, “Beach Blast” at Belton Lake Outdoor Recreation Area, and “Nature in Lights,” where attendees were able to enjoy more than five miles of illuminated displays in BLORA during the holiday season. In total, these events had over 140,000 attendees.
CYS played a critical role in Fort Cavazos receiving the two recognitions. This came in the form of CYS scoring a 97.47% on the 2024 Army Higher Headquarters inspection, which takes a deep dive into ensuring CYS programs meet the Department of Defense standards and certification to operate by providing experiential opportunities for Cavazos families.
“CYS is always striving to provide quality child care and youth programs by following the criteria and standards set for all CYS programs across the Army,” shared Sheila Curtis, chief of CYS. “Receiving this award is a testament to the team that all the hard work they put in daily to provide quality programs and support for military families is recognized.”
CYS provides child care services for families to allow peace of mind so service members can focus on the military mission.
“Fort Cavazos CYS programs go far beyond child care,” she continued. “We are focused on developing and broadening our children and youth’s overall experience by providing opportunities for community service, leadership and citizenship. CYS continuously partners with our community and local schools to ensure children and youth have life-enriching experiences.”
Other organizations highlighted for the installation’s awards include the Garrison Safety Office, Information Management Office, Garrison Protection Program, Resource Management Office, Directorate of Aviation Operation, Real Property Office and the Sexual Harassment and Abuse Response and Prevention program.
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