USDANEWS VOLUME 57 NO.5 -JUNE/JULY 1998

We Honor 110 Award-Winning USDA Achievers

by Charlene Baker, Office of Human Resources Management

USDA honored a number of its employees, for their outstanding achievements, at its “52nd Annual Honor Awards Ceremony,” which took place on June 10 in the Jefferson Auditorium of USDA's South Building in Washington, DC.

Sandra Anglade, USDA’s Employee Recognition Program Manager with the Office of Human Resources Management and coordinator of the Ceremony, said that 142 nominations, which included 66 individuals, 6 teams, and 70 groups, were submitted to the USDA Honor Awards Evaluation Committee. The eight-member Committee reviewed those nominations and made its recommendations to Secretary Dan Glickman.

“The Committee forwarded to Secretary Glickman 77 percent of the nominations it had received,” she said.

Anglade noted that USDA honor awards ultimately were awarded to 110 recipients, including 51 individuals, 5 teams, and 54 groups.

Glickman delivered the keynote address and then he and Deputy Secretary Richard Rominger presented the major USDA awards to the employees.

The 51 individuals receiving USDA honor awards included:

For Emergency Response: William Goddard (Natural Resources Conservation Service), Reno, Nev.; and Robert Quinlan (Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service), McIntosh, Minn.; For Environmental Protection: Gordon Grant (Forest Service), Corvallis, Ore., Chung Hse (FS), Pineville, La.; Dwight LeBlanc (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), Port Allen, La.; and Harry Pionke (Agricultural Research Service), University Park, Pa.; For Equal Opportunity: Peggy Castillo (FS), St. Paul, Minn.; Danny Crawford (Farm Service Agency), Athens, Ala.; Ken Metherell (FS), Hathaway Pines, Calif.; and Sharon Pelletier (Rural Housing Service), Windsor, Conn.; For Heroism: Joseph Bennett (APHIS), Buffalo, N.Y.; Ersel Frailey (FS), Camptonville, Calif.; Roger Richardson (Food Safety and Inspection Service), Ponca City, Okla.; and Harry Toler (Agricultural Marketing Service), Lexington, Ky.; For Personal and Professional Excellence: William Anthony (ARS), Stoneville, Miss.; Clinton Balok (CSREES), Crownpoint, N.M.; Donald Bay (National Agricultural Statistics Service), Washington, DC; Richard Douglas Block (FSA), Eugene, Ore.; Richard Boxleitner (FS), Curlew, Wash.; William Boyer (FS), Auburn, Ala.; Charles Cavin (CSREES), Rutledge, Tenn.; Robert Davis (ARS), Beltsville, Md.; Linda Detwiler (APHIS), Robbinsville, N.J.; Michael Doyle (CSREES), Athens, Ga.; William Dugan (FS), Portland, Ore.; Donald Eaddy (National Association of State Departments of Agriculture), Raleigh, N.C.; Richard Fitzgerald (FS), Washington, DC; George Flick (CSREES), Blacksburg, Va.; James Haskell (Rural Business-Cooperative Service), Washington, DC; Irene Lee (CSREES), Pine Bluff, Ark.; Mary Mafuyai (CSREES), Greensboro, N.C.; Roger Mitchell (CSREES), Columbia, Mo.; Chris Niedermayer (FSA), Washington, DC; Sally Nunn (FSA), Washington, DC; Roger Rowell (FS), Madison, Wis.; Henry Schaefer (AMS), Lisle, Ill.; David Seivers (RHS), Nashville, Tenn.; Wayne Sherman (CSREES), Gainesville, Fla.; Robert Snieckus (NRCS), Davis, Calif.; Richard Van Blargan (FSIS), Washington, DC; and John VanSickle (CSREES), Gainesville, Fla.; For Public Service: Craig Allen (AMS), Phoenix, Ariz.; James Richmond (FS), Durham, N.C.; Joyce Richmond (Office of the Chief Financial Officer), New Orleans, La.; Robert Simpkins (CSREES), Yardville, N.J.; and James Sparkman (National Association of State Departments of Agriculture), Jackson, Miss.; For Reinventing Government: David McKeever (FS), Madison, Wis.; and Marlin Waller (FSIS), Minneapolis, Minn.; For Support Personnel: Lori Anderson (APHIS), Ames, Iowa; Cynthia Arnette (FS), Asheville, N.C.; and Janice Bosse (CSREES), Moscow, Idaho.

W. Goddard
R. Quinlan
G. Grant
C. Hse
D. LeBlanc

H. Pionke
P. Castillo
D. Crawford
K. Metherell
S. Pelletier

J. Bennett
E. Frailey
R. Richardson
H. Toler
W. Anthony

C. Balok
D. Bay
R. D. Block
R. Boxleitner
W. Boyer

C. Cavin
R. Davis
L. Detwiler
M. Doyle
W. Dugan

D. Eaddy
R. Fitzgerald
G. Flick
J. Haskell
I. Lee

M. Mafuyai
R. Mitchell
C. Niedermayer
S. Nunn
R. Rowell

H. Schaefer
D. Seivers
W. Sherman
R. Snieckus
R. Van Blargan

J. VanSickle
C. Allen
J. Richmond
J. Richmond
R. Simpkins

J. Sparkman
D. McKeever
M. Waller
L. Anderson
C. Arnette
J. Bosse

The 5 teams receiving USDA honor awards included:

For Environmental Protection: Dale Meyerdirk and Edward Gersabeck (APHIS), Riverdale, Md.; For Heroism: Patrick O’Neil and Howard Grice (FS), Bishop, Calif.; For Personal and Professional Excellence: Kenneth Eskins and George Fanta (ARS), Peoria, Ill.; John Manis and Harold Crook (Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration), Washington, DC/Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Rubén Reyes and Judith Conde (CSREES), Vieques, Puerto Rico.

D. Meyerdirk
E. Gersabeck
P. O'Neil
H. Grice

K. Eskins
G. Fanta
J. Manis
H. Crook

R. Reyes
J. Conde

The 54 groups receiving USDA honor awards included:

For Emergency Response: the Arkansas Emergency Watershed Protection Group (NRCS), Little Rock, Ark., Kalven Trice, Group Leader; the Eighth Street Fire Interagency Rehabilitation and Flood Control Team (FS), Boise, Idaho, David Rittenhouse, Group Leader; the Emergency Response Recall Team (FSIS), Washington, DC, Jesse Majkowski, Group Leader; the Emergency Watershed Restoration Team, (NRCS), Davis, Calif.; William Ward, Group Leader; the Karnal Bunt Project Team (APHIS), Sacramento, Calif., Robert Nave, Group Leader; the Lakewood Ranger District (FS), Lakewood, Wis., Kim Schoenebeck, Group Leader; the North Dakota State University Extention Service Flood Educational Team (CSREES), Fargo, N.D., Becky Koch, Group Leader; the Red River Valley Flood Response Team (ARS), Grand Forks, N.D., James Penland, Group Leader; the Strawbery Task Force (Office of Inspector General), San Francisco, Calif., David Dickson, Group Leader; and the Weather Response Group (CSREES), St. Paul, Minn., David McAllister, Group Leader; For Environmental Protection: the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and Agricultural Research Service Medfly Group (APHIS), Guatemala City, Guatemala, John Stewart, Group Leader; the Asian Long-Horned Beetle Team (FS), Durham, N.H., H. Sharon Ossenbruggen, Group Leader; and the Fiber Loading (FS), Madison, Wis., John Klungness, Group Leader; For Equal Opportunity: the AgExport Services Division (Foreign Agricultural Service), Washington, DC, Charles Alexander, Group Leader; the Civil Rights Economic Analysis Group (Economic Research Service), Washington, DC, Joy Harwood, Group Leader; the Elkhorn Slough Group (NRCS), Salinas, Calif., Daniel Mountjoy, Group Leader; the Florida Spring Creek Watershed (NRCS), Marianna, Fla., Gregory Nolin, Group Leader; the Grape Germplasm Group (ARS), Ithaca, N.Y., Donna Gibson, Group Leader; the Historically Black College and University Comprehensive Program Group (FS), Jonesboro, Ill., Marlene Rivero, Group Leader; the Idaho Initiative Team (FS), Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Joseph Encinas, Group Leader; the National Employee Development Center (NRCS), Fort Worth, Texas, Charles Adams, Group Leader; the Nutrition Education for Diverse Audiences Conference Planning Committee (CSREES), Washington, DC, Wells Willis, Group Leader; and the Office of Inspector General Core Civil Rights Audit Team (Office of the Secretary), Washington, DC, Roger Viadero, Group Leader; For Personal and Professional Excellence: the Animal Production Food Safety Partnerships Team (FSIS), Washington, DC, Bonnie Buntain, Group Leader; the Cheese Price Team (NASS), Washington, DC, Robert Milton, Group Leader; the China Animal Products Export Group (APHIS), Bejing, China, Ray Miyamoto, Group Leader; the Cold Storage Warehouse Investigative Group (FSIS), Atlanta, Ga., Donald Crull, Group Leader; the Current Research Information System Enhancement (CSREES), Washington, DC, Colin Kaltenbach, Group Leader; the Food and Feed Safety Group (ARS), New Orleans, La., Thomas Cleveland, Group Leader; the Food Loss Group (ERS), Washington, DC, James Blaylock, Group Leader; the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Training Development Group (FSIS), College Station, Texas, Robert Davis, Group Leader; the National Food Safety Education Conference Planning Group (FSIS), Washington, DC, Susan Conley, Group Leader; the Russian Market Information Team (AMS), Washington, DC, Terry Long, Group Leader; the Sanitation Standard Operating Procedure Project Team (FSIS), Washington, DC, Jeanne Axtell, Group Leader; the Scrapie Research Group (CSREES), Washington, DC, Katherine O’Rourke, Group Leader; the Task Force on Grain-Handling Practices (OIG), Indianapolis, Ind., William Schenk, Group Leader; the Timber Demand and Technology Assessment Research Work Unit (FS), Madison, Wis., Kenneth Skog, Group Leader; and the World Food Summit Preparatory Team (FAS), Washington, DC, Avram Guroff, Group Leader; For Public Service: the Commodity Food Package Review Group (Food and Nutrition Service), Alexandria, Va., Philip Cohen, Group Leader; the First-time Hmong, Cambodian, and Laotian Home Buyers Education Program (CSREES), Minneapolis, Minn., Diane Corrin, Group Leader; the Grand Forks, North Dakota, Field Office (GIPSA), Grand Forks, N.D., Thomas Wrenn, Group Leader; the North Dakota State Statistical Office (NASS), Fargo, N.D., Larry Beard, Group Leader; the Oglethorpe Restructuring Group (Rural Utilities Service), Washington, DC, Thomas Eddy, Group Leader; and the Rio Bravo Resource Conservation and Development, Hispanic Outreach for USDA Program Participation Pilot Project (NRCS), Zapata, Texas, Zaragoza Rodriguez, Group Leader; For Reinventing Government: the Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Program Group (RBS), Washington, DC, Dwight Carmon, Group Leader; the Civil Rights Action Team and Executive Support (OSEC), Washington, DC, Pearlie Reed, Group Leader; the Commodity Complaint and Food Safety Task Force (FNS), Alexandria, Va., Ronald Johnson, Group Leader; the Field Restructuring Action Committee (RHS), Washington, DC, Diana Shermeyer, Group Leader; the Food Stamp Program Recipient Claims Team (FNS), Alexandria, Va., Lou Pastura, Group Leader; the Grade Standards Reinvention Group (AMS), Washington, DC, Kenneth Mizelle, Group Leader; the Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative Coordinators (NRCS), Temple, Texas, Gary Westmoreland, Group Leader; the PLANTS Development Team (NRCS), Baton Rouge, La., J. Scott Peterson, Group Leader; and the Service Center Administrative Management Business Process Reengineering Team (NRCS), Washington, DC, Nathaniel Deutsch, Group Leader; For Support Personnel: Fringe Benefits Processing Units 1 and 2 (OCFO), New Orleans, La., Ronald Andrus, Group Leader.

In addition to the 110 USDA honor award presentations, USDA recognized its 1997 Presidential Rank Award recipients, the USDA recipients of major awards sponsored by external organizations, and the 362 Departmental employees across the country who have 40 or more years of federal service. ¤

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