ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- Air Force Reserve Command leaders recognized outstanding Reserve Citizen Airmen during the 2020 Airmen of the Year ceremony held virtually, Nov. 14, 2020.
Lt. Gen. Richard W. Scobee, chief of the Air Force Reserve and AFRC commander, along with AFRC Command Chief Master Sgt. Timothy C. White Jr., presided over the ceremony and spoke highly of the selected Airmen and their achievements within the command.
“The command chief and I had the ability to talk to all of our airmen and leadership ahead of time and one of the things that is crystal clear to us both is that we are doing a great job in the Air Force Reserve Command,” Scobee said. “We are doing a great job of grooming leaders of substance that are going to be able to take our organization where it needs to go in the future.”
All winners and nominees competed in their respective Numbered Air Force command before competing at the AFRC level.
The AFRC Airmen of the Year winners for 2020 are:
Airman of the Year: Staff Sgt. Krystin Springer-Ince, 35th Aerial Port Squadron, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey (4 AF);
NCO of the Year: Technical Sgt. Nicole Gansert, 78th Air Refueling Squadron, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey (4 AF and USAF 12 OAY of 2020 winner);
Senior NCO of the Year: Master Sgt. Sandra Crenshaw, 94th Logistics Readiness Squadron, Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Georgia (22 AF);
First Sergeant of the Year: Senior Master Sgt. Rebekah Spedaliere, 35th Aerial Port Squadron, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey (4 AF).
This year’s nominees were also recognized for their achievements.
The nominee representing the 4th Air Force was:
SNCO of the Year: Master Sgt. Timothy Strader, 434th Civil Engineer Squadron, Grissom Air Reserve Base, Indiana.
The nominees representing the 10th Air Force were:
Airman of the Year: Staff Sgt. Hayley Sewell, 419th Medical Squadron, Hill Air Force Base, Utah;
NCO of the Year: Technical Sgt. Timothy Overgaauw, 477th Force Support Squadron, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska;
SNCO of the Year: Master Sgt. Jesse Ross, 70th Aerial Port Squadron, Homestead Air Reserve Base, Florida;
First Sergeant of the Year: Chief Master Sgt. Christina Bicknell, 919th Special Operations Mission Support Group, Duke Field, Eglin AFB, Florida.
The nominees representing the 22nd Air Force were:
Airman of the Year: Senior Airman Allison Copeland, 934th Airlift Maintenance Squadron, Minneapolis, Minnesota;
NCO of the Year: Master Sgt. Christina Rapolla, 433rd Training Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio, Texas;
First Sergeant of the Year: Senior Master Sgt. Teresa Lapcheske, A8 Programs Division, Air Force Reserve Command, Robins AFB, Georgia.
The nominees representing Headquarters Air Reserve Personnel Center, Buckley AFB, Colorado:
Airman of the Year: Staff Sgt. Joanne Skafidas, Evaluation Reports Appeal Board Office;
NCO of the Year: Technical Sgt. Iliah Duncan, Pre-trained Individual Manpower (PIM) Mobilization Office;
SNCO of the Year: Senior Master Sgt. Derek Maiava, Education & Training MAJCOM Functional Manager;
First Sergeant of the Year: Senior Master Sgt. Tony Peel, ARPC First Sergeant.
The nominees representing Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command, Robins AFB, Georgia were:
NCO of the Year: Technical Sgt. Daniel Urban, Enterprise Cyber Transport Office;
SNCO of the Year: Master Sgt. Phillip Baham, III, AFRC Civil Engineer Training Functional Area Manager;
First Sergeant of the Year: Senior Master Sgt. DeBlair Tate, First Sgt. Academy Instructor, Ira C. Eaker Center for Leadership Development, Montgomery Air Force Base, Gunter Annex, Alabama
The First Sergeant Council of the Year award was also presented to the 910th Air Lift Wing, Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio.
In closing, White congratulated the winners and nominees and spoke of his pride in the AFRC team.
“Team, we are extremely proud of all of the hard work that you’ve done, and you’ve gotten us through 2020, and I know you’ll get us through 2021 because of your leadership, and your service and commitment to this country,” said White. “We appreciate you, and we thank you. It’s our pleasure to serve alongside you and to be part of your command team.”