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GTSC’s Homeland Security Today Announces 2024 Holiday Hero Award Winners

Washington, D.C., November 1 — Homeland Security Today, the premier nonprofit information source for homeland security news, analysis, and insights, announced selections for the 2024 Homeland Security Holiday Hero Awards, including Lifetime Achievement Award Winner Elaine Duke, former Secretary of Homeland Security, and National Homeland Security Person of the Year, Under Secretary of Intelligence and Analysis at DHS, Ken Wainstein.

“The National Homeland Security Awards recognize heroes chosen by their peers from all across the country. The awards have grown to recognize federal, state, and local heroes who are working tirelessly to protect the public and our way of life,” said Kristina Tanasichuk, Executive Editor of Homeland Security Today and CEO of the Government Technology & Services Coalition. “We want to be sure that these selfless, hard-working individuals know that there are people who appreciate what they do and want to honor their work on behalf of America.”

The awards were crafted to recognize disciplines and functions within the field of homeland security to assure that every individual working to protect the country in cybersecurity, infrastructure protection, intelligence, human trafficking, border security, and acquisition have an opportunity to receive thanks and recognition. In 2024, three awards were added: Global Most Valuable Player, Acquisition Excellence in Artificial Intelligence, and the Most Innovative Campaign to Combat Human Trafficking. These new awards recognize the dynamic and interconnected missions in homeland security.

HSToday selects a handful of exceptional leaders and do-ers from hundreds of nominations submitted over a two-month period. Nominations are solicited from the readership of HSToday and the public. Both public and private sector nominees are considered.

This year’s awardees include:

Homeland Security Lifetime Achievement Award

The Honorable Elaine Duke, Former Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

National Homeland Security Person of the Year

Ken Wainstein, Under Secretary of Intelligence and Analysis, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

State Homeland Security Person of the Year

Major Frank Hooton, Commanding Officer, Texas Border Joint Operations Centers

Local Homeland Security Person of the Year

Bridgett Lewis, Manager, Homeland Security, Port of Long Beach, California, Councilmember, City of Torrance, District 2, California

Most Valuable Player – Global

Keith Hood, Deputy Assistant Director, Border Security Division, INTERPOL Washington

Most Valuable Player – Federal

Erika Botts, Chief Technology Officer, Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Most Valuable Player – State

California Maritime Security Council – Maritime Domain Awareness

Most Valuable Player – Border

Nael Samha, Executive Director, Targeting and Analysis Systems Program Directorate, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Most Valuable Player – Data Advancement

Michelle Zebrowski, Chief Data Officer, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Federal Small Business Champion

Office of Small Business Utilization, U.S. Department of the Treasury: Donna Ragucci, Director, OSDBU, U.S. Department of the Treasury; Melissa Oliva, Deputy Director, OSDBU, U.S. Department of the Treasury

Citizen of Mission

Dexter Ingram, Founder, IN Network

Excellence in Outreach – Federal

Capacity Building Organization, Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency

Niki Lane, Branch Chief, Acquisition and Budget, Capacity Building; Cristen Winegrad, Deputy Branch Chief, Acquisition and Budget, Capacity Building; Alex Bortz, Acquisition and Budget, Capacity Building

Excellence in Outreach – Local

Harris County Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management, Tech Unit, Texas

Excellence in Outreach – Public Health

William Braniff, Director, Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Most Innovative Campaign to Increase Security

Federal Protective Service: “Your Safety, Our Priority” Campaign, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Nadia Aman, Unified Processing Team, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Most Innovative Campaign to Combat Child Exploitation

Homeland Security Investigations “Know2Protect” Campaign, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Most Innovative Campaign to Combat Human Trafficking

Miami International Airport Human Trafficking Unit (MIA-HTU)

Acquisition Excellence – Federal

CISA’s Threat Intelligence Enterprise Services (TIES) Acquisition Team, Niki Lane,Section Chief, Acquisition & Requirements Management, Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation

Joseph Sheridan, Supervisory Coordination Center Officer; Pamela Elliott, Contracting Officer’s Representative, Cybersecurity Shared Services Office; Jason Neumer, Information Technology Management; Congressional BOT Team; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Acquisition Excellence – Artificial Intelligence

Peter Giambone, Contracting Officer, Acquisition Innovation Advocate, Office of Acquisition, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Backbone Awards

Nina Cardwell, IT Specialist, Agile Methods Team, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Phillip Troutman, Lead Data Architect, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Market Maven

Chad Poland, Product Manager, Cybersecurity Shared Services Office, Cybersecurity Infrastructure Security Agency, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Homeland’s Human Firewall – Federal

Edam Colón, Acting Executive Advisor, Information Technology, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Homeland’s Human Firewall – State

Matthew Hladik, Area Port Director, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Homeland’s Human Firewall – Local

Joseph “Tony” Misher, Associate Director, Cyber Integration, Technology & Innovation Directorate, Federal Protective Service, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Mission Awards

Allan M. Collier, Requirements Manager, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Audrey Tucker, Program Manager, HR Academy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Brad Hepburn, Coordinator, Maritime, Homeland Security Division, Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, California

Daniel Boyd, Systems Engineer, Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

David “DJ” Smith, Technical Surveillance Agent, Virginia State Police

Domestic Preparedness Support Initiative: Professor Rodrigo Nieto Gomez, Center for Homeland Defense and Security, Naval Post Graduate School

Edward Seebald, Founder & CEO, Seebald & Associates International

Geoff Hale, Director, Election Security Initiative, CISA, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Katie Thielmeyer, Risk Reduction Officer, Unmanned Aircraft Systems Manager, Woodlawn Fire Department

Kim Rae Valentine, Branch Chief, Mission Services, Systems Delivery Division, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Learning Library Team, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Terrance Dunford, Community Relations Officer, Buffalo Field Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Raghavender (Raghu) Sriram, Branch Chief, Infrastructure (GLOVAL and ELIS) & Shared Services, Transformation Delivery Division, Office of Information Technology, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Ross Bezark, Field Operations Branch Manager, Federal Air Marshal Service, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Trang Tran, Deputy Chief Data Officer, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

GTSC Small Business Member of the Year

Kapstone Technologies/KAPCOM Services

GTSC Mid-Tier of the Year

RELI Group

GTSC Mentor of the Year

Deloitte

GTSC Strategic Partner of the Year

Center for Homeland Defense and Security, Naval Postgraduate School

GTSC Strategic Advisor of the Year

Robin Champ, Vice President, Strategic Foresight, LBL Strategies

The awards will take place December 5th, 2024 outside of Washington, D.C. in Occoquan, Virginia and is open to the entire homeland security community. More information on attending or supporting is available here.

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Homeland Security Today
Homeland Security Todayhttp://www.hstoday.us
The Government Technology & Services Coalition's Homeland Security Today (HSToday) is the premier news and information resource for the homeland security community, dedicated to elevating the discussions and insights that can support a safe and secure nation. A non-profit magazine and media platform, HSToday provides readers with the whole story, placing facts and comments in context to inform debate and drive realistic solutions to some of the nation’s most vexing security challenges.

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