Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Erick Studenicka | Nevada Army Guard Capt. Sonji Davis, the commander of the North Las Vegas-based 100th...... read more read more
By Sgt 1st Class Erick Studenicka
Nevada Army Guard Joint Force Headquarters
CARSON CITY – Nevada Army Guard Capt. Sonji Davis, the commander of the North Las Vegas-based 100th Quartermaster Company, garnered a huge – and one could correctly say BIG as well – military award when she was awarded the Blacks in Government Military Meritorious Service Award Aug. 16 in Cleveland, Ohio.
Davis, of Las Vegas, distinguished herself out of the more than 440,000 National Guard Soldiers and Airmen nationwide to become the single Guardsman to receive the esteemed award. Of the more than 400,000 total, there were 51,937 Black Soldiers in the Army National Guard as of 2020, according to the Department of Defense’s Demographics Report “Profile of the Military Community.”
The BIG Meritorious Service Award recognizes military members and Department of Defense civilian employees who have supported the DOD mission, overseas contingency operations, and whose attributes best epitomize the qualities and core values of their respective military service or DOD component. In addition to Davis, nine other individuals from other DOD entities were also recognized with Meritorious Service Awards August 16.
Davis’s receipt of the award marks the second consecutive year a Nevada Guardsman was recognized with BIG’s Meritorious Service Award. In 2021, Nevada Air Guard Chief Master Sgt. Torry Thompson garnered the National Guard’s Meritorious Service Award. Thompson received his award for his military work as the 152nd Force Support Squadron’s superintendent and work within the community including building partnerships with the Northern Nevada Black Cultural Awareness Society.
According to her BIG citation, Davis was recognized for both her military and civilian achievements and advocacy for all Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives.
In her civilian occupation, Davis is an area manager for Amazon and is a Diversity Champion who helps plan DEI initiatives and leads and participates in educational events and roundtable moderation.
Davis is the local Amazon site leader for the Black Employee Network, where she implements learning opportunities for associates and leaders in the building pertaining to the history, culture, and current state of the Black community.
Davis is also in the final stages for the launch of her non-profit program, The Ladies Alliance. It’s a program for women ages 16-21 who are transitioning or have transitioned from foster care. The Ladies Alliance is set to provide mentoring, life coaching/ skills, education counseling and leadership training to these young women.
“This is my top award I have received while in the National Guard, either civilian or military related,” Davis said. “I am very surprised, thankful and grateful that I was chosen to receive the award from the Blacks in Government organization.
“I realize all Guardsmen do so many great things throughout their respective communities. For me to receive this recognition, I am very grateful and proud because – even though I never set out for recognition – the work that I am doing in the community and want to do in the community is acknowledged.”
Davis is a native of the metropolitan Chicago area and she graduated from Thornwood High School in South Holland. She then attended Northern Illinois University. Davis was also a Soldier in the Illinois Army Guard and became a commissioned officer in 2014.
Davis transferred to the Nevada Army Guard in 2017 and became the executive officer for the 1864th Transportation Company. Subsequently, she served with the 757th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion during its international deployment to Poland in 2020 as its logistics officer.
She became the commander of the 100th Quartermaster Company in April 2021 shortly after her return from Europe. The unit produces, stores and distributes potable water to support units within designated areas of operation. The unit can also provide transportation and decontamination for evacuees during natural or man-made disasters.
The Ladies Alliance is set to launch in March 2023 with its initial fundraiser. The Ladies Alliance website will go online in January 2023.
“It will be a great opportunity for the Las Vegas valley to be able to support these young women ages 16-21 as they leave the foster care system and provide support for those who have already left the system,” Davis said. “Additional support is required in our ever-changing world.
“I’m really happy that this organization will be able to lend support for these women who find themselves in the foster care system through no fault of their own. I’m very excited about the work we will do in the Vegas community.”
For information on the Ladies Alliance, write to: theladiesalliance@gmail.com.
According to the Blacks in Government website, BIG was established in 1975 and incorporated in 1976 by a small group employed at the Public Health Services section within the Department of Health, Education and Welfare in Rockville, Maryland. The organization was viewed as essential by Black civil service employees due to the wide assortment of racially-motivated issues faced by the HEW Black employees in Rockville.
Initially, it was believed the organization would address only the problems at the federal level. However, it was soon determined that state, county and municipal Black employees were faced with the same general type of employment problems.
BIG is a national response to the need for Blacks in public service to organize around issues of mutual concern and use their collective strength to confront workplace and community issues. BIG’s stated goals are to promote equity in all aspects of American life, excellence in public service and opportunity for all Americans. For information on BIG, visit: www.bignet.org.
In addition to Davis, the other BIG Meritorious Service Award winners included: Dr. Julia Klock, Defense Contract Management Agency; Master Sgt. Tamesha Armstead, Defense Health Agency; Raymond McAllister, Defense Intelligence Agency; Sherry Mitchell, Defense Logistics Agency; Ricky McGlothin, Defense Threat Reduction Agency; Sharon Ackah, U.S. Air Force; Cheryl Neal-Green, U.S. Army; Capt. Michael Fredie, U.S. Coast Guard; and Edward Carter, U.S. Navy.
| Date Taken: | 08.31.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 08.31.2022 12:59 |
| Story ID: | 428400 |
| Location: | LAS VEGAS , NV, US |
| Hometown: | LAS VEGAS, NV, US |
| Web Views: | 207 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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