VA employees honored for service to veterans.

Compassion, dignity and care are the standards and goals for thousands of Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees, and many provide services to veterans that go far beyond the requirements of their job.

In recognition for their exceptional service, a trio of VA employees--leaders in medical care, claims adjudication and honoring fallen veterans--received the 2007 National Commander's Awards for Outstanding VA Employees.

Dr. Steven G. Scott, Medical Director for the Tampa, Fla., VA medical center's polytrauma center, received the award for Veterans Health Administration employee; Kay E. Collins, manager of the Boise, Idaho, Veterans Service Center, was honored with the Veterans Benefits Administration award; and Mariano E Pizarro, head of the Marker Cleaning Section at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, was presented with the award for National Cemetery Administration employee.

"They are among the thousands of remarkable individuals dedicated to serving our nation's veterans," said Washington Headquarters Executive Director David W. Gorman. "Their compassionate efforts and ingenuity have distinguished the VA's mission of service."

Dr. Scott has been chief of rehabilitation medicine and spinal cord injury for more than 10 years at the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa. Since becoming medical director of the Tampa VA polytrauma center, he has become a national leader in meeting the needs of the most severely injured service members wounded in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

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"I am very humbled to receive this award," Scott said. "It is a great honor because I greatly respect the DAV and those it serves. I feel it is a privilege to serve the DAV and those represented by it. I thank God, my family and those that I serve, my patients."

Establishing the first comprehensive care program for severe combat casualties, Scott developed an innovative, holistic approach to rehabilitation of war injuries that focuses medical and therapeutic skills on each patient while offering counseling, housing and other aid for their families.

A specialist in physical medicine and rehabilitation, Scott said his heart and his life are dedicated to his work. "It is a privilege and honor to have the opportunity to treat these veterans. We take our work very seriously, and we want to offer the highest quality care to the most severely injured service members, realizing if we can't take care of them we can't take care of anyone. This care has to be the highest priority of our country."

"I find that takes 24 hours a day and seven days a week to care for the most severely injured veterans and their families," he said. "It's a large responsibility, and you have to be on top of what you do and do it well using all the resources we have in this country to care for them."

"No matter how badly injured a person may be, there is always something they can do," said Scott. "I try to create ability, allowing them the opportunity to rehabilitate, freedom to overcome disabilities and give them the independence they fought for so they can go home and live with their families and independently in their communities."

"Dr. Scott has made a great difference in the lives of these young service members and their families," Gorman said. "He knows each wounded veteran and their family by name and works tirelessly with them. He's recognized as a selfless physician who veterans and their families know and trust."

Kay Collins has worked for the VA in Boise since 1969 and became manager for the Veterans Service Center in 2003. She was recognized for her ability to identify issues and concerns quickly and actively participates in outreach and homeless veterans programs throughout Idaho.

"This award certainly isn't for me," said Collins. "It's all of my office and all of my staff who take a great deal of pleasure in doing what we do."

"I have made serving veterans my life's work," she said. "I've never had any doubt that what I do is the most gratifying work one could possibly have."

Collins said receiving the award is an enormous honor. "I never get a chance to thank veterans enough," she said. "I can't say it enough, and I can't offer it enough. I am just very, very touched to be selected for the DAV award."

"Kay cares deeply about the mission of the VA," Gorman said. "She is driven to provide the best possible service to veterans and their families in recognition of the sacrifices they have given for their country."

Mariano Pizarro is not only the head of the Marker Cleaning Section at the National Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, he is the only member. He volunteered to restore, clean, align and level grave markers in the cemetery after efforts failed to find a private contractor to do the work.

Pizarro, a disabled veteran, came up with a method that streamlines the process--allowing him to work on 250 markers a month in the cemetery that holds 33,000 grave markers. Over the past three years, he has removed, cleaned, realigned and raised more than 8,500 stone markers, many of which are more than 50 years old.

"I was very surprised and honored to receive the award," said Pizarro. "It was an honor to be picked by the DAV. I was very pleased that my work has been recognized."

Pizarro said tending to the markers of those buried at the National Cemetery of the Pacific "is how I serve. When I do my duties here, I recognize their feelings and do my job to the best of my abilities to make the headstones look proper. I do it efficiently and with great respect."

"Mariano has a focused work ethic that has had a wonderful impact on the lives of the next of kin of veterans, and for everyone who visits the National Cemetery of the Pacific," Gorman said. "He reflects the nation's high regard for the dignity and honor that is bestowed on our nation's veterans."

"All of the VA employees are examples of the wonderful people who work on behalf of our nation's veterans," he said. "We, as veterans, are indeed lucky to have such a dedicated, respectful and resourceful group of people who offer veterans the services they have earned and deserve."

"The National Commander's Outstanding VA Employees awards are a way for our organization to say thanks to the best of the VA's employees. They do outstanding work, and we are grateful for their efforts," Gorman said.

Employment Awards Honor Those Who Find Jobs for Veterans

When veterans leave the service their paramount thought is what are they going to do? What kind of job can they find with their disabilities? Can they earn enough money to survive?

Finding a gratifying and productive job can make all the difference in restoring the confidence of disabled veterans. Work brings self-respect, pride in accomplishment and a sense that there is a productive life with disability.

"Fulfilling this vital need takes people who are dedicated to helping veterans find jobs and employers who are eager to hire them," said National Commander Bradley S. Barton.

Each year a select group of employment specialists and companies are recognized for their efforts on behalf of veterans with the National Commander's Employment awards. These awards recognize the professional service and dedication of those Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Specialists and Local Veterans Employment Representatives who help veterans obtain and keep jobs and the large and small employers that hire disabled veterans.

The employment representatives and companies recognized with National Commander's Employment Awards at the 86th National Convention are:

* Outstanding Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Specialist: Ken Moon, South Dakota Career Center, Rapid City, S.D.

* Outstanding Local Veterans Employment Representative: Robert L. Copeland, Jr., Mesquite Workforce Center, Mesquite, Tex.

* Outstanding Large Employer of the Year: Defense Service 2 LLC, Greenville, S.C.

* Outstanding Small Employer of the Year: Navigator Development Group, Inc., Enterprise, Ala.

"These outstanding employment professionals and employers greatly assist our nation's veterans and disabled veterans in finding excellent jobs," said Commander Barton. "They exhibit the standards that others should follow to help honor the service and sacrifice of our veterans."