Photo By Jay Woods | Dennis Bradley receives the Special Recognition Award for Safety from Col. Bob Dixon,...... read more read more
Today we wanted to shine a spotlight on Dennis Bradley, the current chief of safety and occupational health for the Little Rock District. Dennis is a kind, genuine, and humble man whose dedication to duty is hard to match. Bradley, has received two awards recently for his stalwart efforts in furthering Corps missions. Bradley received the Special Recognition Award for the deployment process and getting people down range and back. The Risk Management Award was awarded to him for his exceptional performance and contributions to the Army Safety and Occupational Health Program over the last year.
When asked what his favorite part of the job is with a smile he said, “I love helping people. It’s an awesome thing to be able to take someone who didn’t know how to get from point a to point b and give them a road map to get there. I just love helping people.” Bradley’s division is an essential function of the Corps because they contribute greatly by being present and relevant in all aspects of operations.
It means interjecting themselves in operations like engineering and construction, lock and dams, or powerhouse. When asked for more detail Bradley responded, “In and of ourselves safety doesn’t produce anything other than making polices. We aren’t turning wrenching or fixing locks or any of those things but the way we interact with all our folks out there, we are facilitating them doing those things so that’s how we best help, by helping them get their job done.”
Bradley’s dedication to his duties is astounding. Not only did he manage safety support for Hurricane Maria he also managed support for Harvey, Irma, and the wildfires in California. He managed the deployment of more than 120 USACE safety professionals, nurses, and industrial hygienists. In addition to this, he also simultaneously managed division, headquarters, and national emergency response as well as his district. Knowing that the mission has to get done no matter what, Bradley even deployed himself during the holidays to Puerto Rico when no one else would.
When asked how he felt about receiving these awards, he responded with, “It’s always nice to be recognized. Everyone wants to be valued and I am no different. I don’t try to bring a lot of attention to the things I do, but it is nice every once in a while to be recognized for your efforts.”
These types of awards are important to Bradley because even though it’s nice to have one’s supervisors notice your work it’s even more uplifting when your peers do. A lot of these awards are peer driven so when an individual receives them it’s because their peers have taken notice of their efforts and want to recognize them for it.
Bradley is no stranger to federal service. He is a veteran of the United States Army and retired as a chief warrant officer four in 2008, after 27 years of service in the Arkansas Army National Guard. During his service, Bradley had many jobs. He was a detachment commander for 2.5 years. He was also a brigade movement officer. During this time, he planned the movement of 3,000 troops from Arkansas to Iraq and back. He handled all the logistics and arranged for transportation and rail load. He was often called upon to take on duties of this nature because he didn’t mind doing it. He enjoyed it.
Laughing he stated, “Like any horse you have, you let it haul the load until it stops. But it was fun and it gave me a lot of experiences.” Experiences that have transitioned with him into the Corps. Given his length of service in the military he has won numerous awards along the way.
When asked about these awards he stated, “I don’t have a love me wall or anything like that I keep my individual awards at home and all the awards that are currently up on my wall are for the district. At the end of the day I’m proud of the things I have done but it’s not really one person who gets this stuff done.”
Alongside his duties to the Corps, family is one of the most important things to Bradley. He has four children and ten grandchildren! His grandbabies occupy a lot of his free time and he plans to spend his time taking them to see all the wondrous things our nation has to offer.
When asked why this is important to him he stated, “I have been blessed to see most of the United States and a lot of the world actually, and I want them to have those experiences too.” Smiling for a moment, he then laughed and replied, “That’s how I am going to spend my retirement money.”
He is a modest man and wants to ensure that those who deserve credit receive credit where it’s due. Instead of taking sole recognition for his achievements he acknowledges that it was a team effort.
“When I say I deployed 120 plus people I physically did a lot of work but there were five, ten, and twenty people at any given time who were helping with all of these things all the time so it’s never one person who gets it done. It’s a team effort and I appreciate that and like to thank these folks all the time. Even though I am managing the bigger part of it, without the folks actually punching the buttons and doing the EM shop work and all the other stuff, none of this stuff happens. Nobody gets down range and the hurricanes don’t get applied safety to them. I appreciate it but it’s a team effort that gets everything done.”
But as we all know the mission never stops. At the time this article is posted Bradley will be heading to the Bahrain district to support a dive mission. Dennis Bradley is an illustration of exemplary character and a great role model for all.
“We have an outstanding safety program, one of the best in the Corps. Dennis also manages the deployment of safety personnel across the Corps. We couldn’t be prouder of him.” Said Colonel Bob Dixon, commander of the Little Rock District.
Story was originally posted to the Pacesetter Live website on Oct. 10, 2018 and may be found at http://pacesetterlive.dodlive.mil/2018/10/10/dedication-shines-through-in-awards/
| Date Taken: | 11.29.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 11.29.2018 12:21 |
| Story ID: | 301656 |
| Location: | LITTLE ROCK, AR, US |
| Web Views: | 79 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, DEDICATION SHINES THROUGH IN AWARDS, by Erin Jimenez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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