The Awards

The Service to America program honors career achievements in the federal service. Eight winners, profiled in the pages that follow, were selected from a group of 28 finalists by a panel of national leaders. Finalists and winners were chosen from among 496 nominees in seven categories. One was designated as Federal Employee of the Year.

2004 FINALISTS

Career Achievement

• Marsha Henderson, director of health programs, Office of Women's Health, Food and Drug Administration, Washington.
• Han K. Kang, director of the War-Related Illness and Injury Studies Center, Veterans Affairs Department, Washington.
• David A. King, director, Marshall Space Flight Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Huntsville, Ala.
• Elizabeth Martin, senior scientist and director, Night Vision Program, Air Force Research Laboratory, Mesa, Ariz.

Call to Service

• John Butler, research chemist, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md.
• Leopoldo Miranda-Castro, biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Arlington, Va.
• Ranjeet Singh, program analyst, Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Kabul, Afghanistan.

Homeland Security

• Jose Melendez-Perez, Customs and Border Protection officer, Homeland Security Department, Orlando, Fla.
• Michael Washington, industrial engineer/health scientist, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta.

Justice and Law Enforcement

• Michele L. Culp, U.S. postal inspector/program manager, U.S. Postal Service, Washington.
• Samuel Holland, assistant inspector general for investigations, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Washington.
• Anna Moretto and team, supervisory attorney, Education Department, New York Office for Civil Rights.

National Security and International Affairs

• George Aldaya, director, Kansas City Commodity Office, Farm Service Agency, Kansas City, Mo.
• Keith Brown, deputy assistant administrator, Bureau for Africa, U.S. Agency for International Development, Washington.

Science and Environment

• Amy Alving, director, Special Projects Office, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va.
• Diane Drigot, senior natural resources management specialist, U.S. Marine Corps, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.
• William H. Gerstenmaier, program manager, International Space Station, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Houston.

Social Services

• Thomas Cacciarelli, chief of transplant surgery, Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Veterans Affairs Department.
• Joseph A. Foster, senior attorney, Public Health Division, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta.
• Margaret J. Washnitzer, director of state assistance, Office of Community Services, Administration for Children and Families, Washington.

2004 Selection Committee

A select group of prominent national leaders has been charged with identifying the Service to America Medals honorees.

• Jodie Allen
  Managing Editor, U.S. News & World Report
• Roy Bostock
  Chairman, Partnership for a Drug-Free America
• Albert Carnesale
  Chancellor, University of California, Los Angeles
• Timothy B. Clark
  Editor and president, Government Executive
• Thad Cochran
  U.S. Senate
• William Cohen
  Chairman and CEO, The Cohen Group
• Tom Daschle
  Democratic Leader, U.S. Senate
• Dr. Antonio Flores
  President, Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities
• Kay Coles James
  Director, Office of Personnel Management
• Colleen M. Kelley
  National president, National Treasury Employees Union
• Carol Mendelsohn
  Executive producer, CSI
• Leon E. Panetta
  Director, Panetta Institute of Public Policy
• Alma Powell
  Co-Chair, America's Promise-The Alliance for Youth
• Rebecca W. Rimel
  President and CEO, The Pew Charitable Trusts
• John Sexton
  President, New York University
• Max Stier
  President and CEO, Partnership for Public Service