WASHINGTON, D.C. - USA Freedom Corps Director Henry Lozano today honored seven active-duty members of America’s Armed Forces with the President’s Volunteer Service Award during a White House ceremony, recognizing their outstanding service to others in need. Joined by General James Cartwright, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Mary Jo Myers, member of the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation and wife of General Richard Myers; and actor Stephen Baldwin, Director Lozano thanked the awardees from all branches of the military for their service to causes greater than self.

Today’s event, held in honor of Military Appreciation Month, marked the launch a new initiative to highlight volunteer service among America’s military personnel, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense. The goal of this initiative is to recognize individuals who go above and beyond the call of duty in service to community and country. The President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizes outstanding volunteers across the Nation who give of themselves by extending a compassionate hand to their neighbors in need.

Biographies of Awardees

Sergeant Christopher Allais, U.S. Army
Fort Richardson, Alaska

SGT Christopher Allais has been an active volunteer with various organizations including the Army Family Readiness Group (FRG), for which he contributed over 100 hours of service last year. He has dedicated the majority of his spare time to lending a helping hand to organizations that need him through activities like coordinating the unit Christmas party and playing auctioneer for "Switch Position Day" to raise money for the FRG. Additionally, he has volunteered for the Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers organization as a Driver for Airmen/Soldiers against Drunk Driving. SGT Allais was also recognized as the Fort Richardson Military Volunteer of the Year for giving his precious personal time and energy to volunteer activities. His peers say his dedication shows not only in his Army career but also in his service to his military community.

Petty Officer First Class Haneefah Collins, U.S. Navy
Norfolk, Virginia

Through her involvement with various community service projects and activities, IT1 Haneefah Collins has had a profound effect on the lives of many of our nation’s youth. IT1 Collins has served as a Drug Education For Youth (DEFY) Staff Mentor and Team Leader for 150 young children. She operated a two-week intensive leadership camp and has devoted over 1,000 hours of personal time for classroom instruction to help youth develop character, leadership and confidence. Additionally, she spearheaded the First Annual Naval Computer and Telecommunication Area Master Station, Atlantic DEFY Red Ribbon Week Campaign, providing drug education for youth ages 9-12. IT1 Collins demonstrated her devotion to the community by serving as a volunteer for the Tidewater Special Olympics Area Two Fall Games, giving children and adults with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to develop courage, experience joy, and participate in the sharing of gifts, skills and friendships with their families, and the community. IT1 Collins has also been awarded the Military Outstanding VolunteerService Medal for her exemplary volunteer service.

Corporal Sona Babani, U.S. Marine Corps
Quantico, Virginia

Corporal Sona Babani is a committed volunteer who enjoys helping others, especially local youth. Corporal Babani mentors troubled children and has helped have a positive impact on more than 100 youth by working to instill in them the Marine Corps traits and principles she values – dependability, integrity, unselfishness, courage, and loyalty. The majority of her volunteer time, totaling over 160 hours, has been with the Rappahannock Area Council for Children and Parents (RACCAP) in Fredericksburg, Virginia. This organization specializes in helping children with abusive parents. Corporal Babani is certified to counsel these children in many areas and volunteers her time as a positive role model.

Major Laird Abbott, U.S. Air Force
HQ USAF

Major Laird Abbott has shown great service to each local community where he has been stationed. Major Abbott has given over 20 years of community service as a volunteer firefighter for five different fire departments as he moved about the country in support of his military career, most recently in Stafford County, Virginia. Despite his commitments as an Air Staff officer and father of two, he volunteers over 18 hours of service to the community every week by providing both fire suppression and emergency medical services to the citizens of Stafford during the nights and weekends. Major Abbott has completed multiple certification courses and over 200 hours of training over the past year to be prepared to assume new duties within a Virginia fire department, having previously served in these roles in other states. Major Abbott also serves as the chair of the recruitment committee, dedicating some of his spare time to attracting new personnel to fill this vital role.

Chief Warrant Officer Lionel Bryant, U.S. Coast Guard
USCG HQ, Washington D.C.

CWO Lionel Bryant serves as the Branch Chief for the Coast Guard Imagery Branch (CG-09221). Bryant gives back to the community as a sports coach for at-risk youth and a volunteer for the Capital Hospice. CWO Bryant has been coaching youth sports in the Northern Virginia area since his arrival to the USCG Headquarters in August 2003. He coaches two sports – football and basketball – and teaches more than just the game to at-risk children. He serves as a mentor and positive male role model to young boys who, in many cases, do not have positive male figures in their lives. He makes himself available to transport some of his players to practices and games. Not only does CWO Bryant teach the boys the necessary skills to excel in sports, he teaches them about discipline and lessons that will extend beyond the playing field and help the youth make positive life choices.

Master Sergeant Tammy Caban, Air National Guard
National Guard Bureau, Arlington, Virginia

MSgt Tammy Caban has been passionately involved with the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) since 2004, a non-profit organization that provides grief assistance to families who have lost a loved one serving the military. MSgt Caban has truly demonstrated her commitment to service before self by spending the past four Memorial Day weekends as a youth camp counselor and group leader. In this capacity, she is responsible for creating a lesson plan around the annual theme for her age group of 5 and 6 year olds, including elements of grief therapy. In addition, MSgt Caban supports wounded warriors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where she has volunteered through Comfort for America’s Uniformed Services (CAUSE) over the past year and a half at the Mologne House, a long-term rehabilitative in-patient treatment center. Through her generosity, MSgt Caban has opened her home to wounded warriors for Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.

Senior Master Sergeant Rene Rubiella, U.S. Air Force Reserve
Patrick Air Force Base, Florida

Since 1992, SMSgt Rene Rubiella has been a community service leader, dedicating more than 60 hours each month to Habitat for Humanity in the areas of public affairs, church relations and as a member of the volunteers committee. He has helped build over 30 homes, serving several times as the construction lead. Additionally, SMSgt Rubiella is a regular volunteer at the Daily Bread Soup Kitchen in Melbourne, Florida, serving meals, preparing food and acting as kitchen manager. Since 2003, SMSgt Rubiella has volunteered as an instructor for Jesus in the Gospel, Disciples and Stephen Ministry classes. He is also active in his community, serving as the director of his Home Owners Association since 2003. In April 2005, SMSgt Rubiella lost his only child in an automobile accident. Since then, he has devoted countless hours to orchestrate an annual Operation Not on Our Watch (Op NOW) event. Op NOW has reached over 20,000 high school students, teaching them about the dangers and consequences of distractions while driving a vehicle.

In his January 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush called on all Americans to make a difference in their communities and across the globe through volunteer service. He created USA Freedom Corps, an Office of the White House, to help Americans answer his Call to Service. Visit www.volunteer.gov or call 1-877-USA-CORPS to find an existing volunteer service opportunity and to find more information about volunteer service programs.

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