The Maine Army National Guard received the 2016 Site Excellence Award for Defense Enrollment Eligibility System and Real-time Automated Identification System in an award ceremony held at Camp Keyes in Augusta on May 17.
According to Staff Sgt. Charles Miller, from the Army National Guard project office, this was the first time that the Army National Guard has received this award.
“The performance criteria is a combination of usage, management of personnel and equipment, excellent policy/procedure practices and innovation,” he wrote in a letter to the winning office.
Michael Sorrento, the Director of Defense Manpower Data Center, came to Maine to present the award to the Adjutant General for the Maine National Guard and the personnel who directly support the DEERS / RAPIDS office year-round.
“All of the benefits that are available to service members, veterans and their families would not be accessible without these systems and the services these offices provide,” said Sorrento. “Mission, benefits, and there are people, like the two we are here for today, that make this mission successful.”
During the evaluation period, Oct 1 2015 through Sept 30, 2016, the MEARNG location issued 1,534 Common Access Cards and 3,758 Teslin Identification Cards. They provide service to over 3,500 National Guardsmen, State employees, contractors and over 10,000 retirees and their dependents in the region.
Rhonda Bonenfant became the Site Security Manager for the MEARNG location and three deployable sites in 2005. With over 12 years of experience working with DEERS and RAPIDS, she is considered the “go to” person by many when they have questions about eligibility. Together, with Sgt. Davis McKenney, a Site Security Manager since 2013, they have continued to work to improve the customer experience.
The office seeks out ways to help facilitate services for individuals that are not able to physically go to the Augusta office, such as their Community Outreach Service. This program visits Veterans Hospitals, nursing homes and hospice living centers where they identified a need for services, said Bonenfant.
A checklist that outlines all of the items needed for transactions at the DEERS office helps reduce the number of customers making multiple visits or being turned away because they are missing paperwork, she added.
The two are proud of the steps taken to improve efficiency and customer satisfaction and will continue working to improve the process. They work closely with several other veteran organizations around the state, including the Transition Assistance Advisor and the Survivor Outreach Support contractor when information needs sharing, particularly if computer based systems are not working. This helps ensure the widest possible dissemination of information when a system is down.
The Adjutant General - Brig. Gen. Douglas A. Farnham recognized the hard work of Bonenfant and McKenney during the ceremony, but also praised the state for their accomplishments overall.
“I am consistently proud of our Maine National Guard team when different segments of our workforce are recognized,” said Farnham. “This accomplishment is another example of how our team is committed not only to excellence, but pride in taking care of our Veterans and their families.”
| Date Taken: | 05.17.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 05.19.2017 13:57 |
| Story ID: | 234492 |
| Location: | AUGUSTA, ME, US |
| Web Views: | 81 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Maine Team Named Best DEERS/RAPIDS Site for 2016, by SSG Angela Parady, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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