Local national receives DA Award from 21st TSC CG

Evelyn Meaker, the chief of information systems division for the Civilian Human Resources Agency Northeast/Europe Region, received the William H. Kushnick Award during an awards presentation Jan. 27 on Panzer Kaserne in Kaiserslautern.

The William H. Kushnick Award is a Department of the Army-level award approved by the secretary of the Army. The award recognizes achievement by Army civilian employees engaged in the administration of civilian personnel programs. These achievements must result in material improvement in service, financial savings or significant social or technological progress, said Sally Smoot, deputy director of CHRA-NE/EU.

“I was very surprised, and I am very excited to receive this award,” said Meaker, a native of Osthofen, Germany. “I found out I was going to receive it in October, and I got to meet the secretary of the Army in Washington, D.C.”

Maj. Gen. John R. O’Connor, commanding general of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, presented the award while the CHRA director and the CHRA-NE/EU regional director participated via video-teleconference. Meaker was presented with the award for her superior achievement in civilian human resources technical programs, which improved productivity throughout the European region and were implemented worldwide. She also received the award for her ingenuity in automating several processes in civilian human resources, saving both time and money, said Erin Freitag, CHRA-NE/EU regional director.

“I love to automate,” Meaker said after receiving the award. “Whenever I see a process, I try to figure out a way to make it go quicker and make it easier for everyone.”

Meaker received this award for her combined 30 years of service to the U.S. military and Department of Defense. Her citation mentioned nearly 25 different projects she worked on to improve processes in Europe and throughout her organization. She is also the first local national to receive this award, said CHRA Director Barbara Panther.

“You should feel very proud, and we are very proud of you for this outstanding achievement,” O’Connor said. “It is because of dedicated people like yourself that the military and all of its information technology and human resource systems are constantly improving to better serve our Soldiers.”