2011 Federal Employee of the Year
Paul A. Hsieh
Position: Research Hydrologist
Agency: U.S. Geological Survey
Location: Menlo Park, California
Achievement: Provided critical scientific information to convince federal officials that the containment cap on a ruptured deepwater oil well in the Gulf of Mexico was working, thereby helping end the environmental disaster.
2011 Career Achievement Medal Recipient
Alfonso Batres
Position: Chief Officer, Readjustment Counseling Service
Agency: Veterans Health Administration
Location: Washington, D.C.
Achievement: Devoted his career to building a national network of small, community-based centers where veterans traumatized by combat obtain counseling, job assistance, medical referrals and other services.
2011 Call to Service Medal Recipient
Ann S. Martin
Position: Senior Intelligence Research Specialist, Office of Trend and Issue Analysis
Agency: Department of the Treasury, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
Location: Vienna, Virginia
Achievement: Worked with Mexican officials to study cross-border currency flows and help disrupt the laundering of billions of dollars derived from illicit U.S. drug sales.
2011 Citizen Services Medal Recipient
Diane K. Braunstein
Position: Associate Commissioner, Office of International Programs
Agency: Social Security Administration
Location: Baltimore, Maryland
Achievement: Created a fast-track system for terminally and seriously ill Americans to receive approval for Social Security disability benefits in days or weeks instead of months or years.
2011 Homeland Security Medal Recipients
C. Norman Coleman
Position: Associate Director, Radiation Research Program
Agency: National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute
Location: Rockville, Maryland
Achievement: Developed a blueprint for the U.S. to deal with the health consequences of a radiological or nuclear incident, and helped the Japanese respond to radiation from earthquake and tsunami-damaged nuclear power plants.
2011 Justice and Law Enforcement Medal Recipient
Charles Heurich and the NamUs Team
Position: Program Manager, National Missing and Unidentified Persons System
Agency: Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice
Location: Washington, D.C.
Achievement: Created and launched an innovative, missing and unidentified persons database that allows law enforcement, families and others to share information and potentially solve cases nationwide.
2011 Management Excellence Medal
W. Todd Grams
Position: Executive in Charge, Office of Management and Chief Financial Officer
Agency: Department of Veterans Affairs
Location: Washington, D.C.
Achievement: Led significant reforms that integrate and streamline agency operations, reducing costs and delivering better service to America's veterans.
2011 National Security and International Affairs Medal Recipient
James Michael Duncan and Chilean Miners NASA Rescue Support Team
Position: Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Johnson Space Center
Agency: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Location: Houston, Texas
Achievement: Provided medical, nutritional, psychological, survival and engineering expertise learned from space exploration to help 33 Chilean miners who were trapped 2,300 feet underground for 69 days.
2011 Science and Environment Medal Recipient
William A. Gahl
Position: Director, Undiagnosed Diseases Program
Agency: National Institutes of Health
Location: Bethesda, Maryland
Achievement: Brings together medical specialists to diagnose mysterious diseases for desperate and long suffering patients.
The Service to America Medals are presented annually by the nonprofit, nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service to celebrate excellence in our federal civil service.
