BEALE AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. –
Air Force Reserve Command's 940th Air Refueling Wing recently announced its 2008 Company Grade Officer of the Year.
Operations Flight Commander, Capt. Rudolph Bartley, from the 940th Civil Engineer Squadron won the wing's prestigious award. The traditional reservist from Sacramento, Calif. said he was thankful to be named CGO of the Year.
"It's an honor to be recognized as the CGO of the year," he said.
The captain served on active duty for four years, and has 17 years with Air Force Reserve. Of his 21 years of military service, he spent 15 years enlisted prior to commissioning six years ago.
He stated CE is always first on the scene, no matter where in the world, to fulfill the Air Force mission.
"We (CE) are typically the first to arrive at a forward deployed location to prepare, repair, and build infrastructure for the deployed forces," said the captain. "As the CE operations flight commander, I go in with our equipment operators and engineering team to assess the location and make plans for infrastructure repairs or improvements, or build a complete functional base camp from the ground up."
Accordingly, his most rewarding duties with the wing have been his multiple deployments.
"Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2008, New Horizons Exercises in Nicaragua 2005, Honduras in 2006," he said. "This is where we go to put into action what we practice as a unit."
Captain Bartley enjoys the camaraderie and successes shared during Unit Training Assemblies and deployments with the 940th.
"I like the sense of accomplishment at the end (of UTA weekend, deployment)," he said "Although, there are times where it seems not much was done, due to the hectic schedule with twists and turns," he said.
In his spare time, he enjoys making music and watching sports.
"This award reflects the dedication and hard work of the men and women of the 940th CES. They are my teammates, and I could not have won this without them," said Captain Bartley.