Dr. David C. Stoudt, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Periods in Theater: 16 Apr 06 – 6 May 06;19 Jul 05 – 24 Oct 05. Dr. David Stoudt organized and led an extraordinary government and industry team on a quick-reaction program to support the war in Iraq. The number of military and civilian deaths caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) has become a top priority within DoD. Based on this critical need, Dr. Stoudt analyzed technical alternatives and initiated the Neutralization of IEDs with Radio-Frequency Program. He successfully executed the program from a concept into a system integrated into a combat theater of operations in less than 18 months – a process that normally takes many years. Dr. Stoudt has initiated multiple technical developmental efforts and worked closely with government and industry teams to resolve the complex technical challenges inherent in transitioning technology in support of warfighter needs.

Leslie C. Thaxton, Jr., Asymmetric Defense Systems Department. Periods in Theater: 30 Mar 09 – 06 May 09; 30 Oct 08 – 15 Dec 08; and 28 Jul 08 – 15 Sep 08. Mr. Leslie Thaxton is a key member of the Joint Expeditionary Forensics Facilities (JEFF) Technical Design, Integration, and Support Team and has spent over 90 days in theater supporting the program. He has made numerous significant contributions to the design, integration, deployment, and sustainment of these forensics facilities and has done an outstanding job supporting all of the operational aspects of the JEFF program. He is well respected among the local JEFF team, the OCONUS JEFF forensics analysts, and the military service men and women affiliated with the forensics facilities. Mr. Thaxton brings a wealth of military experience in special operations, intelligence fusion, targeting, and the training of local nationals to the effort. Mr. Thaxton’s efforts have been crucial to the successful deployment and operation of battlefield forensics capabilities in the Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility.

Michael O. Hatfield, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 23 Mar 06 – 31 May 06. Mr. Michael Hatfield has demonstrated expertise and experience in areas such as high-power radio frequency, electromagnetic effects, pulsed power, control systems, sensors, antennas, diagnostics, and ordnance. The quick-reaction effort has required coordinating and teaming with other services, labs, and many contractors. Mr. Hatfield has attacked state-of-the-art issues to support the development of advanced designs and to overcome problems. He performed tests, analyzed data, and prepared briefings for very high level decision-makers within the Navy and DoD. He has an extraordinary ability to perform systems analysis, absorb new information, and to achieve technical insights essential to the success of the program.

Timothy L. Spivak, Engagement Systems Department. Period in Theater: Feb 07 – Mar 07. Mr. Tim Spivak is commended for his service to our country in support of warfighter operations in Iraq where he led a team of Navy, Marine, Air Force, and Army technical experts performing an assessment of Physical Security Equipment. Visiting over 13 remote outposts and forward operating bases, Mr. Spivak and his team interviewed warfighters and surveyed equipment in order to understand deficiencies and define a comprehensive set of requirements that would support the Joint services for the next 20 years. Subsequently, these requirements led to a Joint Capabilities Technology Demonstration to deploy near-term capability.

Michael A. Richardson, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 26 Aug 05 – 10 Feb 06. Mr. Michael Richardson was responsible for overall system integration and for assembly and testing of major subsystems. He also assumed a leadership position during predeployment testing in Yuma, Arizona. Mr. Richardson demonstrated expertise and vital experience in areas such as high-power radio frequency, electromagnetic effects, pulsed power, control systems, sensors, antennas, and diagnostics. He ensured successful system integration by completely assembling the subsystems on the production facility floor prior to overall integration into the military vehicle. Mr. Richardson performed tests, analyzed data, and designed and built custom mechanical, electrical, and electronic interfaces for this unique system.

Dennis G. Lilly, Engagement Systems Department. Period in Theater: 4 Mar 07 – 22 Sept 07. Mr. Dennis Lilly is commended for his support of warfighter operations in Iraq, which included the deployment and operation of the GUNSLINGER sniper detection and counter-fire system developed by NSWC Dahlgren. Mr. Lilly’s tasking included day-to-day maintenance, training, and operation of the GUNSLINGER system and direct support to daytime and nighttime operations outside of Al Asad Airbase and Camp Fallujah in Anbar Province, Iraq. Without regard to personal risk, Mr. Lilly deployed with Marines conducting improvised explosive device (IED) sweeps⁄response, counter-sniper fire, raids of suspected insurgent hideouts, snap checkpoints, security for Iraqi government officials, and humanitarian assistance missions.

J. Sue Hyatt-Tracy, Asymmetric Defense Systems Department. Period in Theater: 12 Oct 07 – 21 Jan 08. Ms. J. Sue Hyatt-Tracy met the time and service requirements for the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Global War on Terrorism while serving as the Deputy Science, Technology and Acquisition Advisor (STACA) for Multi-National Force Iraq. In this position, Ms. Hyatt-Tracy was responsible for providing visibility and assessment of all new technical material solutions coming into theater. She played a key role in keeping senior leadership abreast of available and emerging technologies that could be used to meet the ever-changing and emergent needs of the warfighter.

Ward T. Weberg, Asymmetric Defense Systems Department. Period in Theater: 1 May 08 – 31 Oct 08. Mr. Ward Weberg is a key member of the Joint Expeditionary Forensics Facilities (JEFF) Technical Design, Integration and Support Team and has spent over 180 days in theater supporting the program. He has made numerous, significant contributions in support of these forensics facilities and has done an outstanding job setting up and administering the information technology architecture for the JEFF system. In addition to his information technology duties, Mr. Weberg was instrumental to the initial set-up and configuration of the JEFF shelters in theater. He traveled to each lab site within Iraq to ensure that the proper infrastructure was in place and that the forensics equipment was correctly installed.

Keith R. Ofsowitz, Warfare Systems Department. Period in Theater: Jul 08 – Oct 08. Mr. Keith Ofsowitz supported the Naval Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) Defeat Technology–Integrated Product Team (NIEDDT-IPT) that was established with the sole purpose of bringing Navy laboratories together under the Naval Research Enterprise (NRE) to coordinate and identify the Navy’s efforts to develop solutions for countering IEDs used in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. In supporting the NIEDDT, Mr. Ofsowitz assisted by coordinating resources and capabilities across the NRE in response to the Joint IED Defeat Organization inquiries. Within the NRE he helped to coordinate the participation and involvement of scientists and engineers at various workshops involving the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization and the Army. Additionally, he worked with the Army Counter IED (CIED) Task Force (TF) and the Air Force CIED Working Group to coordinate efforts and to provide technical evaluations to CIED proposals from the industry.

Michael P. Smith, Asymmetric Defense Systems Department. Periods in Theater: 15 Apr 09 – 08 May 09; 26 Feb 09 – 04 Apr 09; and 28 Jul 08 – 29 Aug 08. Mr. Michael Smith is recognized for his service in the deployment of Joint Expeditionary Forensics Facilities (JEFF) to Iraq and Afghanistan. The JEFF Program is a joint effort responsible for the development, deployment, and sustainment of United States Marine Corps and United States Army forensics facilities in theater. These forensics facilities are capable of analyzing and exploiting latent prints, firearms, tools, and DNA that correspond to, or were used by, terrorists and insurgents. Due to the JEFF Technical Design, Integration and Support Team’s involvement and leadership within the Anti-Terrorism⁄Force Protection (AT⁄FP) community, the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) has been able to lead this endeavor.

Stephan F. Brown, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 3 Mar 08 – 26 Jun 08. Mr. Stephan Brown, a junior electrical engineer, assumed the responsibility for development of a situational awareness sensor system and for integration of a state-of-the-art suite of military communications systems. Mr. Brown demonstrated remarkable expertise in sensor design and communications system integration and the utilization of both systems in extreme electromagnetic and operational environments. This quick-reaction effort required coordinating and teaming with other services, other labs, and many contractors. Mr. Brown showed remarkable dedication by volunteering to be a system operator in a vehicle during military operations to ensure effective transition to the Marine and Army warfighters.

Dr. Walter D. Sessions, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 23 Mar 06 – 6 Jun 06. Dr. Walter Sessions was responsible for modeling radio frequency (RF) power output from an antenna and predicting the antenna patterns for system effectiveness testing, and for ensuring system safety. Dr. Sessions demonstrated superior skill in RF and pulsed power modeling, simulation, and analysis. Because of his depth of knowledge gained during system modeling, Dr. Sessions was called upon several times during development to provide insights that were key to solving emergent RF problems. He also was tasked to prepare special reports on high-visibility issues such as Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to Personnel (HERP), effectiveness verification, and military tactics. Dr. Sessions performed tests, analyzed data, and prepared briefings for very high levels within the Navy and DoD.

Emanuel Galarza, Warfare Systems Department. Period in Theater: 12 Oct 07 – 29 Feb 08. Mr. Emanuel Galarza was a member of the Iraq Multi-National Force – West (MNF-W) Science and Technology (S&T) Support Team. He is highly recommended for the Secretary of Defense Medal for GWOT based on his achievements and exceptional service while providing in-theater engineering support to the S&T Special Staff Section for II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) and I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He voluntarily deployed for four months to Camp Fallujah, in the Al Anbar Province of Iraq, to meet a broad range of engineering needs. He performed a wide variety of tasks that fundamentally enhanced the MNF-W S&T Special Staff Section’s ability to accomplish its mission. Primary to this effort was his technical flexibility, which allowed him to repair and field a broad range of systems that have been shipped to Iraq with little to no logistical support.

David R. Stewart, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 10⁄12⁄07 – 6⁄13⁄08. Mr. David Stewart volunteered as a member of the Multi-National Force-West (MNF-W) Science and Technology (S&T) Team. He was responsible for providing guidance to Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) for the purchase of approximately 6000 camera systems (an approximately $400M purchase) and their installation on armored vehicles. He was responsible for the evaluation of recently fielded systems, and documentation of the findings. The results were provided to the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) Systems Command to make informed decisions concerning whether to buy more units, and to determine which direction to proceed in regard to these systems. During his assignment, he coordinated a steady flow of events and tasks with the USMC and contractors holding both management and technical positions.

Cristopher L. Lake, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 12 Oct 07 – 13 Jun 08. Mr. Cristopher Lake volunteered as a member of the Multi-National Force-West (MNF-W) Science and Technology (S&T) Team. He was deployed to Iraq for nine months where he helped construct and furnish a workshop, identified equipment shortfalls, and coordinated procurement through NSWCDD reach-back and Warfighter Open Purchase Request Router (WOPRR) to bridge technical gaps between rotating United States Marine Corps (USMC) units. He modified and employed persistent surveillance systems to create adaptable surveillance solutions for mobile and fixed sites. Mr. Lake trained USMC system operators and provided technical insight to Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) leadership and USMC acquisition commands to validate fielded solutions and identify system shortfalls, thus providing critical continuity for technical efforts when I MEF took over MNF-W for II MEF.

Gregory Martin, Warfare Systems Department. Period in Theater: 18 Oct 07 – 29 Nov 07. Mr. Gregory Martin has provided direct warfighter support in the Iraq Theater for the Battle Management System (BMS) as a member of the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) Special Operations and Space Applications Installation and Support Team. Mr. Martin was temporarily stationed at an undisclosed military base within Iraq in support of the Untied States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), fielding the follow-on tactical implementation of the Stand-Off Precision Guided Munitions (SOPGM) Advanced Concept Technical Demonstration (ACTD) on an undisclosed surrogate platform.

Patrick K. Cady, Electromagnetic & Sensor Systems Department. Period in Theater: 17 Aug 05 – 17 Nov 05. Mr. Patrick Cady was responsible for the physical integration of all major subsystems into a military vehicle, including all major rigging operations. This involved formulating custom designs for devices to lift very heavy and bulky loads into spaces in the vehicle with extremely tight clearances. His designs had to be accurate and effective because any lifting error could damage unique equipment worth more than $1M. Mr. Cady also fabricated custom electrical wiring and connectors between the various subsystems in the vehicle. Because of his intimate knowledge of the subsystem connectivity, he was always the first person called upon for troubleshooting unexpected electrical problems during live testing of the vehicle and the system.