FORT RUCKER, Ala. -- Officials recognized post units who excelled in the Army Retention Program during an annual awards luncheon at The Landing June 3.
The U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence "Battalion Early Bird" award for being the first to complete its retention objectives by retaining 80 Soldiers in 2009 and 70 so far this year went to 1st Battalion, 13th Aviation Regiment.
Battalion Commander Lt. Col. Shawn Prickett, Command Sgt. Maj. Steven Green and USAACE Retention Noncommissioned Officer Staff Sgt. Gary Everett accepted the award from Maj. Gen. James O. Barclay III, USAACE and Fort Rucker commanding general.
Barclay congratulated the award winners and thanked them for helping the installation "keep such high-quality Soldiers. This is a small way for us to recognize the hard work you do every day. My hat is off to all of you."
Prickett emphasized the need to keep as many top-performing Soldiers as possible and it's the responsibility of many different people to make sure that happens.
"This is all about signing up the highest quality Soldiers and then doing everything we can to keep them," he said. "It all starts with the reenlistment NCOs and ends at the company level. It's our job to make sure we keep the highest caliber Soldiers."
Receiving the award was especially moving for Prickett, he said, because he is about to undergo a change of command. His next assignment is deputy brigade commander for the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade at Fort Drum, N.Y.
"The key component in all of this is the Families," he said. "We are a community. The Families sacrifice so much for the Soldiers and without them we couldn't do what we do."
First Battalion, 11th Aviation Regiment also received an "Early Bird" award for being the first Forces Command unit to complete more than 100 percent of its objectives for 2009. The 164th Theater Airfield Operations Group won the award for 2010.
Officials honored Sgt. Stephen Fagan, 6th Military Police reenlistment noncommissioned officer, with an Army Commendation Medal for being the "top producing reenlistment NCO" for USAACE. The award was presented to him by Barclay.
"His contributions to the successful accomplishment of the unit's assigned retention objectives were immeasurable," Barclay said.
Fagan said he was honored to accept the award but felt it's the Soldiers who deserve the credit.
Other awards included the Retention Excellence award for achieving 100 percent of a unit's assigned traditional and Reserve component retention objectives for 2009 and 2010. The 2009 FORSCOM winners were 164th TAOG, 1-58th Airfield Operations Battalion, 597th Maintenance Company and 1st Bn., 11th Avn. Regt.
The USAACE winners for 2009 and 2010 were A, B and C companies, all with 1st Bn., 13th Avn. Regt.
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