ARLINGTON, Va. -- A member of the Installation Management Command-Europe Region team was among five IMCOM employees recognized by the secretary of the Army April 14 at a Pentagon awards ceremony for "outstanding civilians."
For categories ranging from traffic management to personal valor, Secretary John McHugh presented plaques overall to 24 civilian employees of the Army. "This is a special day in the Army's year," he said. "This is not a new award - it is honored, it is storied."
IMCOM-Europe's William White won the "Editor of the Year" award for his outstanding achievements as a writer-editor of Army publications in Europe. While editing 25 publications, White succeeded in making the publications more readable while remaining true to the highest of editorial standards. During the same period, he edited 169 pieces of command agency correspondence, a high volume of documents across a number of subject areas.
Since 1947, the Army has every year taken a moment to recognize in its civilian-sector high achievers who move beyond the quotidian toward excellence.
"We are blessed with a civilian workforce that - every day, from the top echelon to the furthest outpost overseas - brings excellence to their efforts... and I know every man and woman in uniform deeply appreciates the sacrifices they've made," McHugh said. "I'm very fond of [saying] that one of the greatest honors bestowed upon me in serving as the 21st secretary of the Army is that you can go to work every day in a building where the word 'hero' means something."
Within that building, the Pentagon, works a man named Martin Griffith, an operations support analyst with the personnel recovery branch, special options division of the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3. McHugh presented Griffith with the "Secretary of the Army Award for Valor," following the man's heroism last June during a local subway crash in Washington, D.C. With disregard to his own safety, the white collar worker jumped onto the tracks to assist a wounded passenger, shielding the woman from the subway's electrified third rail.
Far less dramatic but no less impactful would be the contributions of other Army civilians honored, including the five from Installation Management Command.
"Like so many else in this building [and within the U.S. Army], they've put in long hours and all of us in this great nation have benefited from their outstanding effort," McHugh said, citing efforts to improve leadership, communications and to advance the ethos of opportunity for all.
Lt. Gen. Rick Lynch, commander of IMCOM, spoke at the ceremony of the importance of recognizing civilians for the good they do for the Army.
"Today, the secretary of the Army recognized 24 Army civilians that exemplify excellence and the high standard we have in the Army - and five of these folks were from the Installation Management [Command]," said Lynch.
Among IMCOM winners, executive director John Nerger won the award for "Outstanding Achievement in Equal Opportunity (Managers)" for his "selfless commitment to excellence, diversity and leadership." Officials say Nerger exhibited "unparalleled leadership and full-spectrum commitment" to Army "Equal Employment Opportunities," promoting full integration of EEO values into the command's policy, mission and strategic goals."
Also with IMCOM, Antonio Jones received the award for "Publications Improvements (Command)" for helping to create a "robust" command publishing program and infrastructure, according to Army officials. Jones, a supervisor, program analyst with the administrative services division directorate of Human Resources, G-1, led the development of an "enterprise publishing portal" to provide a one-stop source of current information, policy and procedures for all levels of command - improving the flow of "internal information" among headquarters, 74 installations and 510 sites. Jones further improved internal communication by creating the "Installation Management Command Publishing Bulletin," which announces changes to command publications and publishing news.
Judith Gentner, deputy garrison commander for U.S. Army Garrison, Fort Drum, N.Y., won the command accolades for "tirelessly" working to improve services at the garrison for Soldiers and Families. Officials cited Gentner's consistent ability to leverage private-sector capability as a template for other installations in the Army world.
Finally, IMCOM's Grant Robinson won a "Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service" for managerial excellence as a traffic management specialist within the logistics division in the Republic of Korea. Robinson's work led to improved business practices and standardized transportation services throughout the Republic of Korea, which included improved shuttles, school buses and police support - helping to improve the quality of life for not only the Soldier but the Family as well.
Social Sharing