Employers across the Nation Nominated for Superior Support to
Guard and Reservist Employees
ARLINGTON, Va. - 24 Iowa Guard and Reserve service members nominated their employers for the 2010 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award, the highest recognition given by the U.S. Government to employers for their outstanding support of their employees who serve in the Guard and Reserve. The Freedom Award is particularly significant because only members of the Guard and Reserve or their family members are eligible to nominate their employers for the award.
See below for a list of Iowa employers nominated for the Freedom Award, or visit www.FreedomAward.mil.
Nearly 2,500 Guard and Reserve service members, or their families, from across the country nominated their employers for outstanding support. Nominated employers, ranging from small to large businesses and public sector employers, demonstrated support by providing continued benefits, differential pay, and family assistance. A national selection board comprised of senior defense officials and business leaders will select up to 15 recipients for the 2010 award. The Department of Defense will announce the 2010 Freedom Award recipients this summer. Recipients will be presented the Freedom Award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on September 23, 2010.
About ESGR & the Freedom Award
The Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award was instituted in 1996 under the auspices of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR). ESGR is a Department of Defense agency established in 1972 whose mission is to gain and maintain employer support for Guard and Reserve Service by recognizing outstanding support, increasing awareness of the law and resolving conflict through mediation. Since 1996, only 130 companies have been presented with the prestigious Freedom Award. Previous honorees include Microsoft, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Sears, Home Depot, the State of Delaware, the Santa Ana, California Police Department and the family owned farm Augustine & Sons in Rose Hill, Iowa. For more information, please visit www.FreedomAward.mil
The following employers were nominated for the Freedom Award:
Pizza Ranch |
Ames |
Mary Greeley Medical Center |
Ames |
John Deere Des Moines Works |
Ankeny |
Des Moines Area Community College |
Ankeny |
Poet Biorefining Ashton |
Ashton |
Bemis Clysar |
Camanche |
Mercy Medical Center |
Cedar Rapids |
Rockwell Collins Inc. |
Cedar Rapids |
Adams County Sheriff's Office |
Corning |
Polk County Sheriff's Office |
Des Moines |
Hy-Vee Weitz Construction LLC |
Des Moines |
Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals |
Des Moines |
IBM |
Dubuque |
University Of Dubuque |
Dubuque |
GKN Armstrong Wheels |
Estherville |
Decker Truck Line |
Fort Dodge |
Wells Fargo |
Fort Dodge |
Poweshiek County Sheriff's Office |
Montezuma |
Mt. Pleasant Correctional Facility |
Mt. Pleasant |
Menards Distribution Center |
Shelby |
Mercy Medical Center Sioux City |
Sioux City |
West Des Moines Police Department |
West Des Moines |