Photo By Joshua Cox | Capt. Tim Kinsella, commanding officer, Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, speaks...... read more read more
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By Ensign Giovanna Lina De Vito
For his outstanding leadership and service to Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Capt. Tim Kinsella received the John Paul Jones Award for Inspirational Leadership from the Navy League of the United States during a ceremony July 28, 2021. Kinsella’s dedication and motivation for excellence contributed significantly to the operational effectiveness and mission readiness for NAS Pensacola as he led 300 military and 1,350 civilians, in addition to supporting 127 tenant commands consisting of a population of 22,700 personnel.
The Navy League of the United States, founded in 1902, is a nonprofit civilian, educational, and advocacy organization, according to the Navy League’s official website. With more than 30,000 members and 199 councils, The Navy League supports the sea services: The Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Merchant Marines. Each year, The Navy League recognizes service members who have exhibited exceptional traits and achievements that uphold the values of the United States Military.
The John Paul Jones Award for Inspirational Leadership is awarded to the Naval Officer that has made an outstanding contribution to the high standards of leadership in the Naval service. The Navy League has presented this award to service members since 1957 and is named after “The Father of The United States Navy.”
Kinsella was nominated for this award by his workforce at NAS Pensacola, who believed his work in the past two years has gone above and beyond the call of duty. The selection for this year’s award was very competitive, with more than 200 nominees. However, Kinsella’s actions as commanding officer spoke volumes to his character and earned him this prestigious award.
“When the president of The Navy League called I was surprised that I was nominated, but when he told me that I had won, for the first time in my life I was speechless,” said Kinsella.
Although Kinsella may have been speechless, the people of the base and the city of Pensacola know that Kinsella deserves the recognition and appreciation from this award. In his tenure as commanding officer, Kinsella has persevered through unimaginable challenges, including a foreign national terrorist attack, the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Sally.
December 6, 2019 was the day NAS Pensacola suffered a terrorist attack that resulted in the loss of three military lives and injured eight others.
Despite this tragedy, Kinsella united both the military and civilian Pensacola community and provided a sense of calm and trust during an unprecedented time. His skillful ability to communicate and coordinate with officials and local agencies ensured a secure environment for the investigation to be conducted smoothly. Kinsella’s courage and resolve in the wake of the terrorist attack showed his strength as a leader throughout the community.
The unpredictable COVID-19 pandemic posed significant challenges on NAS Pensacola. As a base that hosts an average of 60,000 students annually, NAS Pensacola is vital to fleet and military readiness. An interruption of training could have posed major setbacks in the operational capability of the United States. However, by instituting a “bubble” environment, Kinsella was able to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 and preserve the mission readiness of NAS Pensacola. Kinsella stood up to the trials of the pandemic and made decisions that provided safe spaces throughout the base to continue training with minor interruptions.
Hurricane Sally, a Category II storm, swept through Pensacola in September 2020. The hurricane caused damages and power outages in buildings across the base. Despite the severity of the storm, Kinsella led his workforce and restored NAS Pensacola to operational capability within 48 hours and restarted all training within a week. Kinsella’s decision making in the wake of a natural disaster further demonstrates his exceptional leadership skills that have earned him this award.
Not only has Kinsella persisted in the face of tragedy, but he has also initiated multiple projects on base and in Pensacola to improve the conditions of the community as a whole. Most notably, Kinsella has been an avid supporter of access to quality education. Since instated as commanding officer, Kinsella has prioritized raising awareness about the state of the education system in the local communities and sought out ways to improve the schools. Along with the Superintendent of Escambia County School District (ECSD), Kinsella established a joint council for the ECSD and NAS Pensacola. The council meets quarterly to discuss improvements to education and to strengthen the relationship between military and the country school district. Furthermore, Kinsella has been instrumental in the establishment of a charter school offered to middle and high school students. The charter school will be available to both civilian and military students.
During the awards ceremony, Rear Admiral (Ret.) Kyle Cozad, President and CEO of the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation, spoke about Kinsella and their time together in the naval service.
“It has always been clear to me that Capt. Kinsella believed that his people came first” said Cozad, “He thinks about what is best for the community and the command and puts it into action.”
| Date Taken: | 07.28.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 07.29.2021 17:10 |
| Story ID: | 402067 |
| Location: | PENSACOLA, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 462 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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