A Public Tribute to the Team

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Very few people will ever get the opportunity to lead an absolutely brilliant team of people who inspire them to excel and feed the fire and passion to do good things. I am one of those lucky few.

During my 26+ years of active duty in the United States Air Force, I had the privilege of leading some really amazing teams. I also had the honor of working for some truly incredible leaders who took the time to teach me how to lead.

I often say it publically that I have had the greatest team of professionals I have ever had the pleasure of working with. This team is the entire staff of the Marketing and Media Branch of Combat Support Associates (CSA, Ltd.)

This public tribute is to you—My team

Now that Lynne and I departed Kuwait, I am full of mixed emotions. It was time for me to go, but it tugs at my heart to leave such a remarkable group of people. I could sum all this up in a few shorts words—Thank you very much. But then again, when have I ever been a man of few words.

When I look back over the last 20+ months of steering the ship, I marvel at the amount of creativity each of you has put forth in turning the Branch into a World-Class operation. Alvin, you always poked fun at me by mimicking my words, and I am truly honored by your efforts to do this. I got a kick out of you quoting my favorite phrase to the team.
“You guys never cease to amaze me. Day in and day out, you guys blow me away. You make it a pleasure for me to come to work every day”.

This simple mantra sums up all of your efforts.

Each of you has earned my respect, the respect of senior leaders in the company and the respect of leadership in ASG-KU. You have set your own course for success and I have had the distinct pleasure of simply steering you guys in the right direction. Stay the course my friends—the future is bright for each and every one of you.

Let me take a few moments to reflect on how each of you has made an impact on me and made me a better person and leader.

LEE

Thank you for being part of my leadership team and keeping me straight. You have a natural ability to calmly look at situations that baffle most of us. I relied on you to keep me straight and reel me in when I got frustrated and agitated with those things beyond our control. When Lynne and I took off on vacations, I always felt 100 percent comfortable knowing that things would continue to flow in my absence. You are a great leader and enjoy working with folks. I have seen you grow and I get great satisfaction from seeing this in your actions. You have a strong morale character that many people can only desire to achieve. Thanks for providing your level headed sanity checks. The team is now in your hands and I feel extremely comfortable entrusting them to your care. Continue to build the team and have fun watching them grow under your leadership. The next chapter for Marketing and Media is yet to be written. You will be able to rocket the team to a whole new dimension. Thanks again my friend.

HEATHER

You were one of the first contractors on the ground at Kuwait Naval Base when I was still active duty. You recall the New Years Eve event you and Loreta pulled off. I said it then and I’ll say it again. You watered my eyes with your brilliance and ability to pull off a huge and perfect event. When I found out that you were on my new Marketing team, I was absolutely delighted. You have proven yourself time and time again. Here is where I get to embarrass you. Heather, when the Marketing Supervisor position was vacated over a year ago, you stepped up and assumed the challenge along with all of your other duties. You did so without the appropriate compensation and prestige of being called an “official supervisor”. I am hoping that in the days to come, we will be able to get this major fallacy corrected and get you into the position officially. You are a natural leader. You have absolutely WOWed me with your pure ability to jump into a supervisory position and do it with your heart and sole. You have impressed the hell out of me. I am honored to have you as part of my leadership team. Thank you for all you have done and continue to take care of your folks. I have learned so much from watching you in action.


Now, I will go around the office and highlight a few things about the rest of this brilliant team of professionals:

JEFRY

You have always been like a younger brother to all of the team. I have been absolutely delighted watching you grow in the last 20 months. I recall when I first arrived. You were the quite one in the office and you didn’t have much to say. Somewhere along the way, you opened up and it has been a pleasure for me to see you come out of your shell. I always got a kick out of watching you come up with a new concept or design. I could see the excitement on your face and in your eyes. Your bright smile and energy is something that I always look forward to seeing when you make your grand appearance each morning. Jefry, keep exploring fun stuff to work on. You have an extremely creative mind and enjoy sharing this spirit with the rest of us.

ERWIN

You are the newest member of the team. You have already brought a whole new level of energy to the office. Thank you for jumping right in and tackling projects on your first day. Please accept our most humble apologies in all the delays you experienced while we were trying to bring you on the team. I know it was a grueling process for you, but we were finally able to bring you on board. Continue to use the guys to steer you in the right direction and keep your creative abilities honed razor sharp. Thanks for bringing your sense of humor with you. You have molded right into the team and are now part of the greatest team on the contract.


ANSON

I will miss you tremendously my friend. You have given me a source of energy and inspiration every day. I think back to the early days and recall just how subdued you were. Out of nowhere, you busted out with a whole new level of creativity and energy and have never looked back. I really get a kick out of seeing your eyes light up when you come up with a project that is totally out of the box. Anson, you have so many professional and personal qualities I could only hope to someday hope to be able to emulate. I have completely enjoyed seeing you grown and create some really awe inspiring projects.

FELIX

What can I say about all of the qualities you contribute to the team. You are one of the finest examples of service before self I have ever witnessed. You are always the first to jump in and help out. You have the natural ability to see what needs to be done and get it done. If I could award you with a Most Valuable Player (MVP) award I would do so. You have selfishly contributed to each and every member of the team and I greatly appreciate all you have taught me about team building.

ALVIN

I wish some day I could master the English language the way you have done so. Your folks should to be extremely proud of their lesson to you and how you have taken this and ran with it. You are one of my quite professionals. You seek no fanfare for all of your efforts. I look back to a year ago when we first started talking about creating a newsletter. You took this thought, nurtured it and have been able to produce 11 absolutely remarkable editions of “To the MAX”. I admire your professionalism, integrity and constant desire to produce superior products. I have learned a few lessons from watching you in action. Thanks for all you have done from your little corner of the world.

CYNTHIA

I have one major regret. We did not get you hired to the team when we first received your resume and package. I was absolutely delighted when the opportunity presented itself to finally bring you on the team. You have a great head on your shoulders and you are a thinker. You bring to the team a great balance. Although you are one of the quite professionals, you seek out opportunities to accept new challenges. I admire your ways of thinking things through and jumping right into new and exciting projects. I am confident you will enjoy seeing the theme projects come together and see the long-term benefits to the troops.


TINA

You rolled in the door like you have been working here forever. I look back on those first few days you joined the team. You took on your fist project and before we knew it you were ready to publish your first perfect project. You are an inspiration to me. I watch as you tackle one project after another and make it look so simple. You sit quietly and create some really exceptional masterpieces and seek no approval but your own. You have high morale character and a really phenomenal work ethic. You have contributed so much to the team. I really admire your ability to work well with others. You have the natural ability to put anyone at ease and get the results to make everyone happy in the process. This is something I have observed in detail and have learned from you. We have been blessed to have you one the team and Lynne and I wish you the best as you return to Colorado and set up household for you and Ken.

JOAN

I first received your resume more than a year before we were able to get you on the team. I regret that we couldn’t have brought you out here before then. You hit the ground and fit right into the team. I have fond memories of you breaking out the luchador masks and everyone having a great time trying them on. I knew at that moment that you would be a high valued asset to the team. You have since stepped up to be the team social coordinator and have contributed immeasurably in continuing to build this team into one cohesive group of folks. Your work ethic is one of those natural abilities you make look so effortlessly. You take a job, jump on it and see it through completion. I look up and before I know it you have completed the project without breaking a sweat. I will also cherish the fact that you volunteered to be my fashion consultant, but I will never part from the fanny pack or Crocs. I’ll be sure to take some cool photos of both while we are traveling the world.

KEN

Ken you have PURE talent when it comes to being a professional photographer. Sure we kid around with you a lot, but you back up your qualifications with the awesome work you publish. I see you in action sharing tidbits of professional secrets with the entire staff. It is one thing to have skill, but it is really inspiring to see someone with your talent share it so freely with the folks around him. Ken, you have brought a great source of humor to each of us. You have lightened things up for us and you always seem to know exactly when I need to be humored. Ken, as you head back to the states to join your bride, please take one thing with you. You have made a tremendous impact on each of us and you have contributed to the success of this team by keeping things in perspective for us. Lynne and I wish you the greatest as you transition back to the states and we look forward to seeing one of your photos on a national publication.

TRISH

Another new member of the team. You have brought more than just your skills with you. You have brought your enthusiasm and this has become contagious. You have so many developed talents and you have made the transition of joining the team seem effortless. It is always a pleasure to see people with a high degree of enthusiasm. It rubs off on all of us and I have had to look back when I was your age and ask myself “why didn’t I have that type of energy”. Thanks for joining the team—I’m sure you will be picking up where Ken leaves off by sharing your skills with the team.

JULIA
First and foremost, you will have to forgive me for continuing to call you Trish, but for some reason, it is engrained in my brain. You joined the team as a professional video production wizard. After seeing your first product, I was absolutely blown away with your video editing skills. You are producing MTV quality products. I really got a kick out of seeing how excited you were to have one of your edits air on National TV. Although you were not given credit on the Late Show with David Letterman, we all know who provided the clip. Continue to produce the high-quality product you are producing and explore some of those fun projects for the future. Oh and another thing, keep smiling. Your smile is contagious. None of us can help but to smile when we see that bright smile of yours.

MARK

You came to us and immediately began to tackle the backlog of video projects. One-by-one, you performed your editing magic and we were able to publish these and get them on the streets. When you get in the editing mode, I have to look up to see if you are still sitting there. You get into your work with a great amount of intensity and it reflects in all of the killer products you have produced. I am particularly amazed with your hiding writing abilities. I look back on the “Got Stress” article for the newsletter and am totally impressed with how you crafted that into a masterpiece. Thanks for stepping up and jumping into the editorial mode and making this strong contribution. Continue to seek these opportunities out.


DENISE

Hey wait a minute, who in the hell let Denise leave. Denise, you are sorely missed around here. I would be remiss if I failed to mention all of the contributions you made to building the team we have today. You kept track of everything for the entire team and took care of all of us. Sure, we affectionately called you the “Mother Hen”, but you assumed this role and we all grew from this. Thank you for staying with the team after Alan departed. We all sincerely appreciated everything you did for us to keep us all focused. Although we are still waiting to hire your position, we will NEVER be able to replace you.

MAX

How could I possibly do a tribute to the team without including MAX. MAX, you represent everything this team has accomplished in the last many months. You will be celebrating your 1st birthday on the 1st of May 2008. You have inspired to entire team to be creative and develop projects they never dreamed they could accomplish. You are everywhere in Kuwait. You inspire countless people outside of this team to “Take it to the MAX”. You have built a reputation for excellence in the entire MWR community and you have been recognized by senior leaders at all levels. I was excited to take you on some of my travels and your photo is now proudly residing in a manyata (home) of a Samburu Warrior in Kenya. I am confident that you will continue to make an impact on the quality of life of everyone in Kuwait.

OK, so now that I have highlighted a few things about each of you, please let me put things into perspective.

I have been humbled and honored to serve as your leader. As I look back on ALL of the fond memories of the Marketing and Media team, I focus on two very important dates.

The first is 1 May 2007. This was the date we gave birth to MAX—our action superhero. Each of you have wrapped your arms around MAX and breathed life into him. He continues to grow stronger everyday and is making a huge impact on the entire ASG-KU community.


The second, but most significant date for me was 26 September 2007. This is the day our team was awarded the Quality Service Award by the President of CSA, Ltd. There is no higher honor for any leader than to have his team recognized for their brilliant efforts. I was like a proud father seeing you guys being recognized for your efforts at the highest level. Few in this company or anywhere else can be more proud of the accomplishments you make on a daily basis. The most spectacular thing about this award is that it was so richly deserved. Each and every member of this team has contributed individual efforts for the good of the whole and all of the right people have taken notice.

As Lynne and I depart on a journey of a lifetime, I will tell each of you that you made a significant impact on me. Thank you for making this the best job I have had in my entire life. Thank you for sharing your hidden talents with me and above all—Thank you for allowing me to humbly lead you. You are the GREATEST team of professional wizards I have ever been associated with. I carry with me the satisfaction that we, together as a team, have shined the spotlight on the Branch. I have many fond memories of my time with you guys, I will carry these with me the rest of my life.

Please stay in touch my friends. Although I may be going around the world, I will always cherish this special time in my life.

Now, quit reading this and get back to creating the magic you know how to create.

In closing, I will say HAPPY TRAILS….Until we meet again.

John

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Comments

[Jefry]

hi john
Hi John.... God bless you..... In my life i can't forget you...... becoz u did me support that much.... u are a great leader in our team.... u left from us. i'm very sad... i miss you a lot.....earth is round so we can meet you anywhere....... Jefry is not forget you .. thanks for your help . enjoy your trip.... wu huuuuuuuu.. but i'm sad......... i miss a great man.....