The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth version existing for acts of joint military service performed under the Department of Defense.
Lee Miller Emile Morin is a United States Navy Captain and NASA astronaut. He flew on STS-110 in 2002.
The 1st Battalion, 6th Marines (1/6) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. It consists of approximately 1,100 marines and sailors. They fall under the command of the 6th Marine Regiment, the 2nd Marine Division of the II Marine Expeditionary Force.
USS Richmond K. Turner was a Leahy-class cruiser destroyer leader in the United States Navy. The ship was named for Admiral Richmond K. Turner, who served during World War II.
John Lucian Smith was an American Medal of Honor recipient and Marine Corps flying ace who, as commanding officer of VMF-223, shot down 19 Japanese planes in World War II and led his squadron to destroy a total of 83 enemy aircraft during the Solomon Islands campaign.
Vice Admiral Diego E. Hernandez was a United States Navy officer who was the first Hispanic American to be named Vice Commander, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).
Roger E. Combs was an American major general in the Air National Guard and an Associate Circuit Judge in Missouri's 4th Judicial Circuit. His last military assignment was as Director of Strategic Plans and Policy (J-5) for the National Guard Bureau. Previously, General Combs served as Assistant Adjutant General-Air and deputy commander of Joint Forces Headquarters, Missouri. He also served as the Air National Guard assistant to the commander, First Air Force, at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.
Rear Admiral Richard Joseph Naughton was the superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy from 2002 to 2003.
Lieutenant General Kevin T. Campbell was the commander of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command from December 2006 to December 2010, replacing Lieutenant General Larry J. Dodgen. In October 2011 Campbell began working for Northrop Grumman Corporation as vice president and corporate lead executive (CLE) for company business after retiring from the Army.
Garland Porter “Gar” Wright Jr. is a retired Rear Admiral of the United States Navy. His final active duty assignment was as deputy director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. He previously served as Commander Joint Task Force 134, and prior to that as Deputy Chief of the Navy Reserve. He is a 1977 graduate of the United States Naval Academy where he was co-captain of Navy's first national championship Sailing team and named an intercollegiate "All American."
Gail Harris is a former United States Navy officer, and was the highest-ranking female African American in the U.S. Navy upon her retirement in December 2001. She served as the first female intelligence officer in a Navy aviation squadron in 1973. In 1979, Captain Harris became the first female and African American instructor at the Armed Forces Air Intelligence Training Center at Lowry Air Force Base, Colorado. In 1989, she became the first female and African American to lead the Intelligence Department for Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron in Rota, Spain, the largest Navy aviation squadron.
Brigadier General José M. Portela (Ret.),, is a retired officer of the United States Air Force who recently retired from the position of Assistant Adjutant General for Air, which he held while also serving as commander of the Puerto Rico Air National Guard. In 1972, Portela became the youngest C-141 Starlifter aircraft commander and captain at age 22. Portela is also the only reservist ever to serve as director of mobility forces for Bosnia. He is also the first native of Puerto Rico to hold the rank of Brigadier General in the United States Air Force Reserve.
Thomas Ray Wilson is a retired United States Navy vice admiral. He previously served as Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency from July 1999 to July 2002.
Daniel S. Mastagni is a retired Rear Admiral of the United States Navy Reserve who, from July to September 2003 served as Commander Naval Forces Korea.
Awards and decorations of the Armed Forces of the Philippines are military decorations which recognize service and personal accomplishments while a member of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
Rear Admiral Karen Ann Flaherty assumed duties as the Deputy Surgeon General of Navy Medicine at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery as of August 6, 2010. Flaherty served as the 22nd Director of the United States Navy Nurse Corps as well as the Deputy Chief, Wounded, Ill, and Injured at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery from 2009 to 2010.
Scott Eugene Sanders received his commission in May 1980 from the United States Naval Academy and was designated a naval aviator in 1982. After completing training in the E-2C, he reported to the Seahawks of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 126. While at VAW-126, he made deployments to the Mediterranean and Caribbean aboard USS John F. Kennedy.
Thomas L. Brown II was a retired United States Navy officer and the first Navy officer to command Special Operations Command South, based in Homestead Joint Air Reserve Base, Florida.
Warren L. Carpenter was a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and the Air Force, including serving as the Department of Defense's Chief Medical Officer for military space shuttle missions, flying 297 combat hours, serving as one of six Residents in Aerospace Medicine selected to fly on medical evacuation aircraft to bring home the U.S. prisoners-of-war from North Viet Nam on the final repatriation leg of Operation Homecoming, and earning six Service awards for marksmanship.
Mark A. "Droopy" Clark is a retired United States Marine Corps major general. Clark was the fourth commander of Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC). He retired from the Marine Corps in 2014 upon relinquishing command of MARSOC.
