Columbus employees earn top marks in DLA’s 58th Annual Employee Awards

Ten Defense Logistics Agency Weapons Support (Columbus) employees and four teams have been named as top performers in DLA's 58th Annual Employee Recognition Awards Program.

The employee recognition program highlights outstanding individuals and teams performing diverse missions across the enterprise, all contributing to DLA's collective mission to drive and sustain warfighter readiness by delivering unmatched global support.

Three exceptional individuals were named as one of DLA's 10 outstanding performers of the year:

• Samantha Marshall, a purchasing agent on the Consolidated Workload Center team in Specialized Management Operations, was praised for awarding over 800 purchase requests, averaging about 80 awards per month. Her high productivity rate is more than triple the average amount processed in the entire organization.
• Jill Marchky, a contract specialist in the Maritime Supplier Operations Directorate, was recognized for developing the first internal Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act Contracting 1100 Prep Course, which enabled more than 120 Pathways to Career Excellence trainees to pass required courses, critically building DLA's acquisition bench strength. Marchky's exceptional instruction achieved a 100% first attempt pass rate among all employees who participated.
• Charles (Chuck) Mielke II, a contract specialist in the Strategic Acquisition Programs Directorate, was lauded for awarding six Global Tire feeder contracts, with a total contract value of approximately $737.6 million over three years. Mielke's contract execution efforts resulted in an estimated savings of $47.4 million over the three-year contractual term.

Two DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) employees were named leaders of the year:

• Christine Davis, a contract specialist in Land Supplier Operations Directorate, was recognized for consistently exceeding productivity goals, openly providing mentorship of customer account specialists, proactively identifying areas for improvement and developing innovative solutions. Her early adoption of both the Ark.ai software and the "FLOW" concept led to a 138% increase in her monthly productivity.
• Carmen Pillitteri, a supervisory contract specialist in the Consolidated Workload Center team within Specialized Management Operations Directorate, was recognized for melding a diverse group of employees from different backgrounds, skill levels and directorates into a highly effective, collaborative and supportive team while leading the Single Buyer initiative to shorten response times and build relationships with 32 critical suppliers to DLA. He currently works in the Procurement Process Support Directorate.

Brandy Warner, an acquisition specialist in the Strategic Acquisition Programs Directorate, was recognized for acquisition excellence for her use of innovative approaches which directly benefited the warfighter while producing significant cost savings, setting the standard for future contracting solutions. She is also credited for fostering a culture of continuous improvement and agility within DLA through her mentorship of junior employees.

Kimberly Donhauser, a management analyst in Procurement Process Support Directorate, was praised for her exceptional and proactive leadership in fostering a robust safety culture across DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) and Defense Supply Center Columbus in her role as collateral duty safety officer. She skillfully cultivated strong relationships with her co-workers and DLA associates, consistently collaborating with subject matter experts across the installation, demonstrating foresight by proactively identifying potential hazards and diligently working to mitigate risks before they caused harm.

Navy Reserve Petty Officer 1st Class Abbie Green, a logistics specialist and member of the DLA Joint Reserve Force, was praised for her leadership of 15 junior Sailors in support of global warfighter operations by fostering a positive command climate through proactive engagement and mentorship. These actions significantly boosted unit morale and professional growth. And her leadership in designing a comprehensive training program on the EBS software suite directly supported the fulfillment of 435 requisition lines valued at $35 million.

Two Defense Supply Center Columbus employees were lauded for their contributions to the morale and safety of the DSCC community:

• Elizabeth "Betsy" Cisek, a management analyst for DLA Installation Management - Columbus Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation, was lauded for her outstanding contributions to FMWR programs and for her work in reopening and sustaining two full-service cafeterias.
• Paul Alexander Jr., assistant fire chief for DLA Installation Management - Columbus Fire and Emergency Services, was praised for expanding active shooter training on DSCC and pioneering a new era of food truck safety by collaborating with outside stakeholders to develop a comprehensive inspection system, ensuring fire safety for operators and consumers alike.

In the team categories, the DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) and Anniston Army Depot Ground Combat Vehicle Team earned the Large Team performance award for its exceptional performance in managing 268,000 items and generating $600 million in sales by pioneering data-driven improvements across acquisition, supply and technical domains. The multi-organizational Acquisition Efficiencies Team garnered praise for its implementation of a comprehensive suite of innovative acquisition efficiency initiatives that dramatically improved manual Purchase Request productivity, resulting in significant benefits to both the warfighter and taxpayer through enhanced responsiveness and operational effectiveness.

A collaborative team consisting of representatives from the DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) Safety Office and DLA Training were lauded for their exceptional efforts in resolving critical safety and occupational training non-conformance and the establishment of a replicable best practice for Safety and Occupational Health training management across the DLA enterprise. The cross-functional Robotic Process Automation BOTs Team hailing from both DLA Weapons Support (Richmond) and DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) received accolades for developing an internal robotic process automation capability, by creating a "citizen developer" cadre to design and field bots to automate repetitive tasks and significantly increase productivity. These bots, spanning various business capabilities, have completed over seventy-five thousand records, saving approximately eighteen thousand man-hours. The team's interdisciplinary nature and focus on innovation and collaboration is expanding automated capabilities across DLA, improving workforce support and warfighter readiness.

The DLA annual awards program was established in 1967 and featured awards for the agency's 10 Outstanding Employees of the Year. It has since expanded and features 12 categories and 63 awards for 2025.

The Columbus award recipients are:

Top 10 Employee

• Category A: Samantha Marshall, purchasing agent, assigned to the Consolidated Workload Center team in the Specialized Management Operations Directorate during the award period.
• Category B: Jill Marchky, contract specialist, assigned to Maritime Supplier Operations Directorate during the award period.
• Category C: Charles Mielke II, contract specialist, assigned to the Strategic Acquisition Programs Directorate during the award period.

Leader of the Year

• Level 1: Christine Davis, contract specialist in the Pathways to Career Excellence Program assigned to Land Supplier Operations Directorate during the award period.
• Level 3: Carmen Pillitteri, supervisory contract specialist, assigned to the Consolidated Workload Center team in the Specialized Management Operations Directorate during the award period.

Joint Reserve Force Military Personnel Awards

• Joint Reserve Force Junior Non-Commissioned Officer of the Year: Navy Reserve Petty Officer 1st Class Abbie Green, a logistics specialist assigned to the DLA Joint Reserve Force during the award period, and now assigned to the Navy Reserve, U.S. Commander, Naval Forces Europe and Africa, N4 Logistics Readiness Cell.

Team Awards

• Large: DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) and DLA Land Anniston Ground Combat Vehicle Team, Land Supplier Operations Directorate and Anniston Army Depot, Alabama
• Acquisition Workforce Team Achievement: Land Supplier Operations Directorate, Maritime Supplier Operations Directorate, Specialized Management Operations Directorate and Procurement Process Support Directorate Acquisition Efficiencies Team; DLA Weapons Support (Columbus)
• Innovation Excellence: DLA Weapons Support (Richmond) and DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) Robotic Process Automation BOTs Team
• Safety Management System Achievement: DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) Safety, DLA Training and collaborating supervisors.

Enterprise Safety Excellence Awards

• DLA Safety Champion of the Year: Kimberly Donhauser, management analyst, assigned to the Procurement Process Support Directorate during the award period.

Installation Support Excellence Awards

• Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation Non-Managerial Employee of the Year: Elizabeth "Betsy" Cisek, management analyst, assigned to DLA Installation Management - Columbus' Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation.
• DLA Fire Officer of the Year: Paul Alexander Jr., assistant fire chief, assigned to DLA Installation Management - Columbus' Fire and Emergency Services.

Acquisition Excellence Awards

• Excellence in Acquisition: Brandy Warner, acquisition specialist, assigned to the Strategic Acquisition Programs Directorate during the award period.

An awards ceremony is planned for Jan. 22, 2026, at the McNamara Headquarters Complex on Fort Belvoir, Virginia.