AFCEC program manager earns top HAF award

  • Published
  • By J.T. Denney
  • AFCEC Public Affairs Intern
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Senior Master Sgt. Julie Sosa, an operations support program manager at the Air Force Civil Engineer Center's Tyndall Detachment was recently named the Headquarters Air Force 2013 Senior Non-Commissioned Officer of the Year.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Cody presented Sosa with the award during a ceremony at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Washington, D.C., on Feb. 25. Becoming the Headquarters Air Force SNCO of the year puts Sosa in the running to become one of the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year.

"It's always great to see our enlisted engineers earn recognition for their dedication to duty, passion to take care of the people and hard work to complete the mission," said Chief Master Sgt. Jerry Lewis, chief of enlisted matters in the office of the Air Force Civil Engineer at the Pentagon. "It is even better to see one of our own AFCEC SNCOs recognized for her outstanding support to our entire Headquarters Air Force."

"We congratulate Senior Master Sgt. Julie Sosa for a job well done, and cheer her on in the next level of competition," said Joe Sciabica, AFCEC's director. "As the saying goes, 'cream always rises to the top' so it's no surprise that one of AFCEC's own was selected for this honor."

In winning the award, Sosa, an engineering assistant by training, was noted for her deployment in Afghanistan as the 451st Expeditionary Combat Support Squadron superintendent. During her time there, she executed maintenance on 320 facilities worth $66 million with manning at only 10 percent of that found at home installation squadrons. Sosa led the 451st Air Expeditionary Wing retrograde actions, publishing operating instructions and removing $7 million in war reserve materials from 118 facilities at 27 camps to reduce the location's footprint by 54 percent. She received a Meritorious Service Medal for her outstanding accomplishments during this deployment.

At AFCEC, Sosa manages support for what civil engineers call the "Big 3" programs - custodial, grounds maintenance and integrated solid waste management - all vital to maintaining Air Force installations. Her work on standard contract documents and common output level standards in a severely degraded resource environment guided $260 million in annual service contract execution. Sosa's ongoing research into bar coding technology standards and associated remote data entry hardware solutions will give civil engineers a better way of managing the Air Force's property assets.

In addition to her direct work for civil engineers, Sosa, who is currently working on Master of Business Administration degree with a specialization in project management, developed and taught four Air Force professional development courses. She also served as the Tyndall Top 3 president, leading 207 SNCOs and 13 committees; and was an officer in the local VFW post, overseeing their budget and supporting scholarship programs and fundraisers that raised more than $100,000.

"I obviously didn't achieve this on my own; I attribute my success to the teams I've worked with in the 451st and at AFCEC," said Sosa. "I want to thank everyone who has contributed to help me get this recognition, especially my husband and fellow civil engineer (Chief Master Sgt. David Sosa), who's my mentor and biggest supporter."