GovernmentExecutive.com

Thirty federal employees were recognized at a breakfast on Capitol Hill Tuesday as finalists for an annual public service award, for exceptional accomplishments in areas ranging from delivery of benefits to Hurricane Katrina victims to international humanitarian assistance.

The finalists stood out from among nearly 500 employees nominated for the 2006 Service to America Medals, which honor achievements in homeland security, international affairs, justice and law enforcement, science and environment, national security, service to citizens and several more general categories. The Partnership for Public Service, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, and the Atlantic Media Co., publisher of Government Executive, established the awards in 2002.

The 30 finalists help put a human face on the good work within the federal bureaucracy, which is often criticized but rarely noted for what is going right, said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., whose parents both worked for the State Department, his father as a Foreign Service officer.

"It's my view that in order to meet the challenges of the 21st century, we need to attract the best and the brightest to public service," Van Hollen said.

Reps. Allyson Schwartz, D-Pa., and Wayne Gilchrest, R-Md., also attended the breakfast, held in a Hart Senate Office Building room with a view of the Capitol dome, to congratulate constituents among the finalists and thank all of those honored for, as Schwartz put it, their "willingness to kick it up a notch and make that extra difference."

Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, ranking member of a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee involved in oversight of the federal workforce, said the finalists should inspire a new generation of public servants.

Indeed, the awards are designed to reflect the contributions of younger employees, with a "call to service" category reserved for public servants 35 or younger. Finalists in that category this year helped secure a historic nuclear energy agreement between the United States and India, developed technology to treat contaminated wetlands, headed the U.S. Embassy in Iraq's legal office and assisted with the development and implementation of the president's AIDS relief plan.

Several of the other honorees were recognized for their roles in the government's response to Katrina. One led a Drug Enforcement Administration team that rescued 90 seniors from a flooded nursing home, while another used mapping techniques to locate and help rescue stranded residents in the New Orleans area. Others helped with delivery of mail and Social Security benefits, and with registration for federal disaster assistance.

Nine of the finalists will receive a medal accompanied by an award of $3,000 to $10,000, in a black-tie ceremony in Washington on Sept. 27. The 15-member selection committee includes Tommy Thompson, former secretary of Health and Human Services, and leaders of universities, private sector companies, a federal employee labor union and media organizations.

A complete list of finalists is available on the Service to America Medals Web site.

COMMENTS

• The majority of these people did only what they were hired to do. Give us a break. We had billions of dollars in graft and corruption over Katrina and the full figure is still not known. The director of a VA system is hired to look after the welfare and care of veterans. Bush and his cronies should be ashamed of themselves over these awards. If it wasn't for the military, nothing would have moved in Louisiana or Mississippi, let alone thousands being saved. Are you telling us that some fat-cat in Washington's headquarters was responsible for the mail systems and getting it restored in the hurricane areas. It is doubtful she could find it on the map. They really do think we are just dumb red-necks don't they? Charlie Posted June 28, 2006 9:10 PM
• Here is another example of the government stroking itself through a non-profit organization. The people listed did do good works because they did the job they were hired to do. Something the private sector does every day. There is little doubt these folks did good work. The real question is what did it cost us and how does it benefit us as citizens of the United States. "… said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., whose parents both worked for the State Department, his father as a Foreign Service officer.” Here is a representative, and his entire family, that does not produce anything of economic value in society and that all live off the taxpayer. Why can't these people at least have some part of the family contributing to the economic well being of the country and simply sucking off the public fund? Helpful? Posted June 21, 2006 7:38 AM