Courtesy Photo | Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, left, director of the Army National Guard, congratulates Sgt. 1st...... read more read more
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FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – When Sgt. 1st Class Amadou Traore came to the United States from the Republic of Mali in West Africa in 2009, he barely spoke a word of English.
Thirteen years later, he not only speaks fluent English, he is now a member of the Pennsylvania National Guard and was recently recognized as the top recruiting and retention noncommissioned officer in the entire Army National Guard.
Traore, who is assigned to the Pennsylvania Army National Guard Recruiting and Retention Battalion’s Delta Company, was named the Army National Guard Director’s Recruiting and Retention Noncommissioned Officer of the Year at the Director’s Strength Maintenance Awards Competition April 1 in St. Augustine, Florida.
It was the second time Traore won the title, having previously won it in 2016.
“Sgt. 1st Class Amadou Traore does not just recruit Soldiers, he recruits entire communities,” said Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, director of the Army National Guard. “He shares his own personal experiences and successes as an immigrant from Mali to connect with applicants from different cultures and communities throughout Philadelphia. His larger than life personality is a force multiplier -- for every one Soldier he enlisted, two more referrals followed.
“This is the second time he has earned this top award and I couldn’t be prouder of his incredible achievement. Great job, and thank you for your constant dedication, Sgt. 1st Class Traore,” Jensen added.
Pennsylvania Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler also congratulated Traore for his major achievement.
“I am proud to congratulate Sgt. 1st Class Traore,” Schindler said. “He has done it again. He is the Army National Guard Recruiting and Retention NCO of the year, for the second time! By meeting and exceeding the challenges of recruitment, Sgt. 1st Class Traore is a credit to the Pennsylvania National Guard. Thank you Sgt. 1st Class Traore for your outstanding work.”
Traore, 35, is a resident of Delaware County and is part of RRBN’s “Team South Philadelphia.” In order to make it to the competition in Florida, he was first named Pennsylvania’s top recruiter for 2021.
He then competed in the regional Strength Maintenance Advisory Group II Director’s 54 competition in Bethany Beach, Delaware. There, he beat out the top recruiters from Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia to advance to the Director’s Strength Maintenance Awards Competition.
In St. Augustine, Traore competed against the top recruiters of the seven SMAGs from across the nation.
Traore said his winning the award is a testament that you can do anything you put your mind to.
“You can do anything you put your mind to if you work on it and master your craft,” he said. “Recruiting is not an easy job, but with dedication and motivation, everything is do-able. The pride I take in winning this achievement is the people who trusted me to be their recruiter. I earned their trust, and I make sure that I uphold that trust.”
While he’s grateful for the award, Traore said he is more focused on his team’ success.
“I’m competitive, which means I want us to win, but if after winning there was no ceremony, I would’ve been 100 percent for that,” he said. “I don’t like the spotlight. The team winning is the greatest joy.”
Traore came to the United State from the Republic of Mali in 2009 initially to go to college. He also wanted to join the U.S. military, so after learning some English he joined the Pennsylvania National Guard in 2011.
“I wanted to serve in the greatest military force in the land,” he said. “But I didn’t speak English, so I had to learn that.”
Traore originally enlisted as a 92F petroleum specialist and was assigned to Alpha Company, 628th Aviation Support Battalion, 28th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade. He is now a full-time recruiting and retention NCO with the RRBN.
When he joined, Traore said he never imagined he’d be competing for national-level awards, much less win one twice.
“The only thing I wanted to do was serve,” he said. “I had to get through some obstacles, and that’s what made me want to be a recruiter. It’s all about opportunities. All I wanted was that one opportunity, and I didn’t want anybody to do anything for me. If you give me that opportunity, I’ll show you how much of a hard worker I am.”
| Date Taken: | 04.07.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 04.07.2022 08:56 |
| Story ID: | 418011 |
| Location: | FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 270 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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