|
WASHINGTON, DC, May 17, 2007 - Twenty-eight Army officers were presented the General Douglas MacArthur Leadership Award for exceptional leadership skills by Army Chief of Staff GEN George W. Casey and Jake Tobin, MacArthur Foundation representative, at the Pentagon May 16. In its 20th year, the award is given annually to active-duty and reserve-component company-grade officers who exhibit outstanding military performance, leadership and achievement, and who also reflect the ideals for which GEN MacArthur stood - duty, honor and country. GEN Casey lauded the junior officers, adding that the MacArthur bust each receives will serve as a reminder of each winner's continued commitment to effective leadership in the Army. "You have been forged in fire and blood and come out steel, and that steel will endure," the Chief of Staff said. "It will continue to endure so long as leaders possess, in MacArthur's words, the will to win and the sure knowledge that - in war - there is no substitute for victory." One selectee, CPT Timothy Gittins, a company commander with the 101st Airborne Division's Company C, 1st Squadron, 61st Cavalry, at Fort Campbell, KY, was also chosen as one of Time Magazine's Top 100 Influential People in the Heroes and Pioneers category. While he said he feels the MacArthur and "Time" awards are great honors, he considers himself just an ordinary guy who wants to keep focus on the job at hand. "I'm just a soldier trying to do my job and happened to get some accolades along the way, but really this award really goes to the senior leadership who brought me up, the subordinate NCOs . . . and the soldiers who do all the hard work," he said. "Hopefully, I was a good representative." The awardees were scheduled to visit President Bush at the White House may 18.soldiers.”  US Army photo by J.D. Leipold (Army News Service)
|
