Awards honor outstanding performers

  • Published
  • By Sarah Stoll
  • Hilltop Times Correspondent
On Friday, March 14, the Team Hill Annual Awards Breakfast was held in the Hill Aerospace Museum. Honorary guests enjoyed a buffet breakfast and a speech given by the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, James Cody.

According to event coordinator 1st Lt. Ainslie Vizcarra, the breakfast was held "to properly recognize the outstanding performers across Team Hill ... Not only is it a great opportunity to connect with senior leaders from across Team Hill, but it is truly rewarding to connect with all the tenant units on base."

After the nominees were announced for the fourteen award categories, guests enjoyed their breakfast and listened to encouraging words from the guest speaker. CMSAF James Cody was eager to praise all of the nominees and encouraged everyone to feel honored no matter who won the title for this year: "merely being a nominee says you are showing our core values: integrity, service, and excellence. The nominees represent what is great in our Air Force... [they] make you feel good for what you are a part of." He went on to note that "there will never be enough compensation for what you and your families do for our nation."

Individuals were recognized in the following categories: Airman, Non-Commissioned Officer, Senior Non-Commissioned Officer, First Sergeant, Company Grade Officer, Team, Honor Guard Airman, Honor Guard Non-Commissioned Officer, Category 1 Civilian, Category 2 Civilian, Category 3 Civilian, Category 4 Civilian, Category 5 Civilian, and Volunteer.

Cody quoted John Quincy Adams in the conclusion of his speech, noting: "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."

Congratulations to the 2014 Team Hill Annual Awards Breakfast nominees. The winners are:

Airman: Senior Airman Lei Yang

NCO: Master Sgt. David Clark

SNCO: Master Sgt. Jeffrey Woods

First Sergeant: Master Sgt. Christopher Gibson

CGO: Capt. Alexander Turner

Team: 775th Explosive Ordnance and Disposal Flight Team (75 ABW) & Ground Radar Evaluation and Optimization Team (84 RADES)

Honor Guard Airman: Senior Airman Michael Ford

Honor Guard NCO: Tech. Sgt. Brendan Reilly

Civilian Cat 1: Hailee Johnson

Civilian Cat 2: Jonathan Powell

Civilian Cat 3: Scott Gerber

Civilian Cat 4: Monte Capener

Civilian Cat 5: John Perry

Volunteer: Senior Airman Tiffany DeNault