l. to r., Sen. Robert Dole, VA Dep. Secretary Gordon Mansfield, Dep. Secretary of Defense Gordon England
First Recipient of DoD Health System’s Award for Service
WASHINGTON – Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Gordon H. Mansfield was named as the first recipient of the “Robert Dole National Award for Service” on Jan. 28 during the annual conference of the Military Health System, which provides health care for the Department of Defense.
“Gordon Mansfield has devoted much of his adult life to serving this nation and its veterans,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake. “Making him the first recipient of this honor sets the bar high for those who follow.”
Mansfield, a long-time official with the Paralyzed Veterans of America and the second ranking officer in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) since January 2004, described former Senator Dole as “one of my personal heroes.”
The award was established in Senator Dole’s name to recognize veterans who continue to serve the nation through public service.
“I cannot think of anyone, in my experience, who has done more [than Senator Dole] for the military and veterans health care systems,” Mansfield said. “As a patient and as a proponent in Congress, he did everything he could to improve the care we provide for our active-duty personnel, our veterans and their families.”
Last year, Dole served as cochair of the President’s Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors, a landmark look at ways to improve VA’s and the Defense Department’s help for injured service members returning to the private sector.
A combat-wounded veteran of the Vietnam War, Mansfield has also served as an assistant secretary in the Department of Housing and Urban Development. He was honored as Outstanding Disabled Veteran of the Year in 2006 at the national convention of Disabled American Veterans.
