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CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --
U.S. Air Force Col. Jeff McMaster, 27th Special Operations Wing Deputy Commander, accepted the 2024 Air Force Community Partnership Award for “Improves Quality of Life for Airmen, Guardians, and Families” on behalf of Cannon Air Force Base at the Association of Defense Communities’ (ADC) Installation Innovation Forum, Oct. 28, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas.
The ADC networks community leaders, state leadership, the military and private industry together, working to synchronize community-military issues, forging resilient communities supporting the military. With nearly 300 communities, regions, and affiliated industry organizations, ADC represents every major defense community and state in the nation.
Cannon AFB was selected for the award for its initiatives through the Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration program. Most notably, Cannon AFB, Melrose Air Force Range, and the surrounding area achieved a significant milestone by being designated as the Eastern New Mexico Sentinel Landscape – a coalition comprised of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, DOD and Department of the Interior. The designation, the first Air Force Sentinel Landscape in the southwest region of the U.S., advances sustainable land use practices across 2.4 million acres of local forestry and agricultural lands, extending the lifespan of the Ogallala Aquifer by 40-45 years and saving 12 billion gallons of water over three years to ensure Cannon AFB’s critical military mission capabilities.
“Our Wing has an incredibly unique mission, and we couldn’t do it without the strong partnerships we have with our local community partners,” McMaster said. “This award shows our team’s drive to pursue initiatives that bolster the resiliency of both our base and our local community—and we sincerely appreciate their support and hard work to ensure our readiness every day.”
This was the third year of the Air Force Community Partnership Awards, an annual award program administrated by the Department of the Air Force to recognize collaborations between the Air Force, Space Force and installations’ surrounding communities.
There are four categories of the award, with one recipient for each category. This year’s recipients and categories are:
1. Cannon Air Force Base – Improves Quality of Life for Airmen/Guardians and Families
2. Royal Air Force Fairford – Provides Cost Savings, Avoidances, and Efficiencies
3. Offutt Air Force Base – Advances Community Relations
4. Ellsworth Air Force Base – Enhances Mission Effectiveness
Dr. Ladonna Clayton, Executive Director of the Ogallala Land & Water Conservancy, and Jeffrey Davis, 27th SOW REPI technical program manager, worked for years to secure Cannon AFB’s Sentinel Landscape designation and further eastern New Mexico’s environmental resiliency.
“This award really underscores the high level of collaboration between Cannon Air Force Base and our surrounding communities,” Clayton said. “It takes lots of expertise, experience and grit to get these initiatives off the ground, but now all of eastern New Mexico will reap the lasting benefits of this milestone.”
The 27th SOW remains committed to fostering key relationships with our steadfast community partners, standing shoulder to shoulder to preserve Team Cannon’s surrounding rural New Mexico environment, and its uniquely unconventional military capabilities, for generations to come.
| Date Taken: | 11.06.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 11.21.2024 15:55 |
| Story ID: | 485871 |
| Location: | CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, NEW MEXICO, US |
| Web Views: | 9 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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