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LOGLINES

THE RIGHT SOLUTIONS — ON TIME, EVERY TIME

January / February 2017

Grand, Green Opening

DLA Distribution’s State-of-the-Art Headquarters

Opens for Business

Transcending the Spoken Word

Learning American Sign Language Helps Improve 

Communications Among the DLA Workforce

Shared Harvest

DLA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture

Help American Indian Tribes Provide Fresh Produce

LOGLINES

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

The Right Solution — On Time, Every Time March / April 2017

Special Poster Insert

DLA Locations Around the Globe
DLA DIRECTOR 

Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy Busch

DLA VICE DIRECTOR

Ted Case

CHIEF OF STAFF

Renee L. Roman

DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Joseph M. Yoswa

DEPUTY DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Patrick H. Mackin

MANAGING EDITOR

Phil Prater

SENIOR EDITOR

John R. Bell

WRITERS

Beth Reece

Dianne Ryder

LAYOUT AND DESIGN

Paul Henry Crank

LOGLINES

THE OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION OF THE 

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY 

Lt. Gen. Andy Busch, USAF

Director, Defense Logistics Agency

From the Director

Acrisp autumn day greeted a crowd of about 100 attendees last 

November in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania, where I helped 

DLA Distribution dedicate its new headquarters building. 

The gleaming, modern structure, with the latest technology and 

environmental features, pointed squarely to the future, while the 

surrounding area of Defense Distribution Center Susquehanna 

inspired reflection on the rich history of the installation.

The installation dates from May 1918, during America’s 

involvement in World War I, when the Army raised the flag the 

first time over the Reserve Quartermaster Warehouses. A quartercentury later, in World War II, the installation served as one of 

Pennsylvania’s largest Army induction centers and a camp for 

German prisoners of war. In later decades, the facility grew as a 

depot and aviation maintenance facility until the Army transferred 

the installation to DLA in the early ‘90s. 

Before the opening of the new building, more than 900 DLA 

Distribution headquarters employees worked from buildings around 

the installation. They now work under one roof, to more efficiently 

support the warfighter of the 21st century. It is important that 

we foster an environment where our workforce can achieve peak 

performance and meet future challenges. This new facility helps 

them do that. You can read more about it in this issue of Loglines.

Since my arrival at DLA, I’ve learned a lot about the importance 

of our whole-of-government support to other federal agencies and 

the nation. In this issue, you can read how DLA supports the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to 

Native American communities.

We also spotlight one of the least understood subsets of the 

active duty military: warrant officers. You’ll meet several members 

of DLA’s warrant officer community while learning how they bring 

specialized expertise and valuable mentorship to the agency.

In support of workforce resiliency, we offer a story on how DLA 

recently began offering free classes in American Sign Language to 

hearing and deaf or hard-of-hearing employees, to facilitate better 

communication between the two.

And for our logistics historians, you can read about the origins 

of National Stock Numbers, the critical but taken-for-granted 

numerical system relied on by logisticians in every supply chain.

As usual, this issue of Loglines offers a varied collection of 

stories that illustrate the diverse activities inside America’s combat 

logistics support agency. Happy reading. LL

LOGLINES is the authorized publication for the Defense 

Logistics Agency’s workforce of federal civilians, activeduty military and Joint Reserve Force augmentees at 

agency activities worldwide and industry customers of 

DLA. Contents of this publication are not necessarily the 

official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. government, the 

Department of Defense or the Defense Logistics Agency. 

LOGLINES is prepared electronically, using desktop publishing applications; no commercial typesetting costs 

are involved. Photos not credited are courtesy of agency 

sources. Submissions and correspondence may be sent to 

the address below:

Headquarters, Defense Logistics Agency 

Office of Public Affairs, 

8725 John J. Kingman Road, Suite 2545, 

Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6221

DLA ON THE WEB www.dla.mil www.facebook.com/dla.mil

SUBSCRIBE TO LOGLINES MAGAZINE

If you would like to be on the Loglines mailing list, please 

email loglines@dla.mil with your name, organization and 

complete mailing address.
Grand, Green Opening.......................... 02

DLA Distribution’s new state-of-the-art headquarters building 

replace decades-old buildings designed for a different purpose.

Transcending the Spoken Word.......... 07

An increasing number of the DLA population uses American Sign 

Language to communicate. Now, the agency is providing ways to 

educate employees in ASL.

Shared Harvest........................................ 10

With DLA’s help, a USDA program helps residents of American 

Indian reservations get the produce they need.

Protecting Critical Information........... 15

“Our warfighters protect our security – are you protecting theirs?” 

reads a poster displayed at DLA headquarters. Protecting critical 

information is everyone’s responsibility.

The Federal Catalog System ................ 21

DLA’s Logistics Information Services is responsible for the 

management and operation of the Federal Logistics Information 

System, incorporating data requirements for cataloging, supply 

and other logistics support for the Department of Defense, civil 

government agencies and participating NATO countries. 

DLA Warrant Officers............................. 26

DLA’s warrant officers are small in number, but their impact is felt 

throughout the enterprise. They play a critical role in providing 

support to commanders, service members and DLA customers.

02

21

07

26

Features

Departments

A Conversation with ... ........................ 18

Joe Yoswa, Director, DLA Public Affairs

DLA NewsWire ........................................ 24

I am DLA .................................. Back Cover

Laurie Darrisaw

www.twitter.com/dlamil www.youtube.com/dodlogisticsagency
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

DLA DISTRIBUTION’S STATE-OF-THE-ART HEADQUARTERS 

Grand, Green Op

The building, designed by Clark Nexsen, features extensive use 

of natural lighting. Other environmentally friendly features include 

energy efficient lighting and equipment with motion and occupancy 

sensors, rainwater harvesting, extensive use of recycled and local 

materials, green roofs, photovoltaic panels on the roof, maximized 

solar orientation, and increased levels of insulation. 

— Photo by Alfredo Barraza, USACE Baltimore
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LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

ening Distribution. The Defense Distribution 

Center Susquehanna’s October 2001 

Summary Master Plan envisioned 

bringing all its Headquarters Command 

employees at the New Cumberland, 

Pennsylvania, installation into one space. 

Championed by former Deputy 

Commander Phyllis Campbell, the project 

sought to replace decades-old buildings 

designed for the needs of the past. The 

oldest occupied building was nearly 100 

years old, dating to the establishment of 

the installation. Other occupied buildings 

were established in the 1940s and 50s, 

while some employees simply worked 

out of temporary structures for years 

awaiting a proper workspace.

As a result of Campbell’s efforts 

to get the project funded, it was 

placed on Office of the Secretary of 

Defense’s Program Budget Review 

Military Construction list for fiscal 2011 

execution, with an original targeted 

completion date of 2013. Because the 

Story by Emily Tsambiras, Chris Erbe and Catherine Hopkins

T

he sunlight glinted off the glass front 

of the modern building, and jets flew 

overhead as guests took their seats, 

awaiting the Defense Logistics Agency 

director and the commencement of the 

ribbon cutting on this fall day in 2016. 

Tall, bright banners flanking the taut red 

ribbon displaying the DLA logo proudly 

announced the organization as “America’s 

Combat Logistics Support Agency.” 

Excitement filled the crowd gathered 

to celebrate the result of 15 years of 

planning, as DLA Distribution’s new 

headquarters building was about to 

officially open for business.

Early Planning

The concept of a new DLA Distribution 

headquarters building first appeared in 

planning documents years before the 

organization was even known as DLA 
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

light, rainwater harvesting, recycled and 

local materials, green roofs, photovoltaic 

roof panels, maximized solar orientation 

and increased levels of insulation. 

Developed by the non-profit U.S. 

Green Building Council, the LEED 

program includes a set of rating systems 

for the design, construction, operation 

and maintenance of green buildings, 

homes and neighborhoods that aim to 

help building owners and operators be 

environmentally responsible and use 

resources efficiently.

The main building replaced Korean 

War-era buildings, said Michael Van Dam, 

the DLA senior energy manager, who 

manages sustainability projects at the 

agency. 

These many small projects 

together make an impressive impact, 

Van Dam said. 

“That’s a lot of nickels and dimes 

adding up to dollars,” he added.

After the design phase, construction 

of the project was awarded to Walsh 

Construction, and the DLA Distribution 

team held a commemorative 

groundbreaking in November 2012. 

Despite snow covering the ground, 

the DLA director, USACE North 

installation is Army-owned, the project 

was turned over to the U.S. Army Corps 

of Engineers to contract for the design 

and construction of the facility.

According to Denis du Breuil, USACE 

deputy chief of Construction Division 

North, who has worked on upgrading 

facilities on the installation for more than 

30 years, the new building was a natural 

evolution with huge benefits. 

“For many years, the Baltimore 

District has had a strong relationship 

with DLA and this installation, building 

multiple projects that support DLA Distribution’s mission and the quality of life for 

the installation’s residents and employees,” du Breuil said. “Like every military 

installation, DLA Distribution is really a 

small city. So getting this headquarters 

building literally up and running benefits 

and impacts an entire community.”

Design/Build Phase

When the contract of the building’s 

interior and exterior design was 

awarded to Clark Nexsen, the firm set 

about designing a state-of-the-art 

facility that would bring all identified 

DLA Distribution employees on the 

installation under one roof.

With DLA’s vision as a guidepost, 

the firm designed a 265,000-squarefoot, multi-story command building. 

The design concept for the building was 

organized into three wings backing onto 

the existing golf course with maximized 

views of the adjacent Susquehanna 

River. The central wing was designed 

as four stories plus a mechanical 

penthouse, while the East and West 

wings were designed as three stories. 

Each wing included a variety of 

office spaces, including open and private 

offices, conference rooms, a 200-seat 

cafeteria, a 394-seat auditorium, a 

videoconferencing center, a computer 

data center with raised flooring, storage 

areas for filing systems and other 

special-purpose spaces. 

Most notably, the building and interiors were designed to be certified as Silver 

by the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design Council. To earn the LEED 

Silver rating, the buildings feature energy-efficient lighting and equipment with 

motion and occupancy sensors, natural 

Contractors install 252 geothermal wells to heat and cool 

the new DLA Aviation Operations Center. The first phase of 

the three-phased, five-story, 252,000 square-foot building is 

scheduled for occupancy in late 2018 or early 2019.

Jackie Roberts, DLA Installation Support
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LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

Atlantic Division commander and DLA 

Distribution commander joined to move 

the first piece of ground, kicking off 

construction of the building.

Nearly a year later, employees 

gathered to celebrate the organization’s 

16th anniversary by signing a steel 

beam that was then incorporated 

as part of the building — leaving an 

indelible mark and becoming a part of 

DLA Distribution history.

In Fall 2016, employees began the 

process of cleaning out years’ worth of 

storage and filing to begin the move to 

the new building. Over three months, 

divisions were relocated to their new 

office spaces. The new building opened 

Nov. 18, 2016.

The Big,Green Picture

The new DLA Distribution headquarters building is just the latest example of 

the agency’s effort to reduce waste, cut 

energy use and save taxpayer money by 

using sustainable design.

Elsewhere at DLA, other projects 

include solar-thermal walls on the sides 

of warehouses in New Cumberland and 

in Tracy, California. The walls pre-heat 

the cool air coming into the building, 

often warming it enough that traditional 

heating is not needed.

And last year DLA Aviation in 

Richmond, Virginia, installed groundsource heat pumps at its new DLA 

Aviation Operations Center. These heat 

pumps use moderate temperatures 

in the ground to boost efficiency and 

reduce costs. 

Geothermal wells are a clean 

technology, according to Alex Vazquez, 

DLA Installation Support at Richmond 

engineer and project manager. 

“We aren’t polluting the air or water. 

They are very efficient and work well 

in winter and summer conditions,” he 

said. “The efficiency will be reflected in 

terms of lower energy costs for DLA and 

in the overall comfort of the employees 

working in the building.”

Occupants will also benefit from 

energy-efficient light sensors using LED 

lights, touchless water-efficient faucets, 

low-fill toilets and air-powered hand 

dryers. The building will also include 

flooring and ceiling materials that are 

environmentally friendly and contribute 

to the building’s LEED Silver rating. 

The new operations center will 

operate using a fraction of energy of 

the buildings it replaces. In the past, 

70 percent of Defense Supply Center 

Richmond’s energy was consumed 

in Buildings 31, 32 and 33. The 

buildings were built in World War II as 

warehouses and then converted to 

administrative space.

The new building’s envelope will 

be box shaped. A building envelope 

is the physical separator between 

the interior and exterior of a building. 

Envelope components are the building’s 

walls, floors, roofs, doors, etc. The 

closer you can get to a box or cube, 

the more energy you can keep in the 

building, according to Damon Igou, 

site energy manager DLA Installation 

Support at Richmond.

While the heat pumps were being 

installed, Vasquez said installation 

personnel were vigilant in protecting 

the environment. 

“During digging, erosion and 

sediment controls and measures in 

the form of sediment control fencing, 

gravel and cloth on the job site protect 

center storm drain entrances that 

flow to the Chesapeake Bay,” Vazquez 

said. “These measures help ensure 

construction mud and material don’t 

flow into the bay.”

Commemorating DLA Distribution’s 16th anniversary and 

celebrating the construction of the organization’s new 

headquarters building, employees signed a beam destined for 

the construction site, leaving an indelible mark and becoming 

a part of DLA Distribution history.

These many small 

projects together 

make an impressive 

impact. That’s a lot 

of nickels and dimes 

adding up to dollars.

 — Michael Van Dam

Jessica Roman
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

Presidential Push

DLA’s push to build more sustainable 

facilities can be traced at least to 2007, 

when then-President Bush ordered DLA 

and other federal agencies (via Executive 

Order 13423) to reduce by 30 percent 

the energy consumption of their buildings 

before the end of fiscal year 2015. To 

comply, agencies began reporting this 

consumption per square foot — called 

“energy intensity” — relative to a 2003 

baseline. Congress later included these 

goals in the Energy Independence and 

Security Act of 2007, which the president 

signed into law.

“While not all of our facilities achieved 

the energy-intensity goal, DLA has 

reduced overall energy consumption 

by about 37 percent over the past 10 

years,” said Chief of Energy Resource 

Management Don Juhasz. 

And last year, then-President Obama 

issued new 10-year sustainability goals 

for federal agencies, signing Executive 

Order 13693 in March 2015, “Planning 

for Federal Sustainability in the Next 

Decade.” It instructs federal agencies to 

reduce energy intensity in their buildings 

another 25 percent by the end of fiscal 

2025, relative to a fiscal 2015 baseline.

Through its policies, programs and 

projects, DLA continues to implement 

wide-ranging initiatives that reduce 

energy consumption. Past projects 

include replacement of inefficient 

incandescent light bulbs with LED, 

fluorescent and other energy-saving 

bulbs, which cut lighting energy use by 

at least one-third. DLA has installed 

occupancy sensors in bathrooms, 

break rooms and warehouse spaces 

and replaced manual thermostats with 

automated thermostats that turn back 

the heat or cooling after hours.

In addition, the agency installed 

hundreds of digital and networked utility 

meters at the DLA facilities using the 

most energy and water. The meters 

enable near real-time detection of 

energy waste, as well as equipment 

failures, equipment-scheduling errors, 

water leaks and other issues.

Reaching the energy-reduction goal 

over the next 10 years may depend on 

advances in technology. One innovation 

that will help: smart lighting that not 

only detects motion but also senses 

the level of ambient light and dims itself 

accordingly, Juhasz said.

The Future of Distribution 

Four years after DLA Distribution’s 

former leaders broke ground on the 

building and more than a decade since 

Campbell’s vision began to take shape, 

DLA Director Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy 

Busch stood in front of the designers, 

engineers, employees, community 

members and logistics partners who 

supported the project, some from its 

early beginnings. 

After discussing some of the 

installation’s history and the significance 

of the building, he thanked Campbell, 

who was in attendance, for being the 

impetus behind the project. He also 

reminded employees of why the building 

was necessary and the critical mission 

DLA Distribution serves.

“To the DLA Distribution workforce, 

enjoy this new facility,” he said. “Take 

advantage of its innovations — use 

them to serve the warfighter more 

efficiently and effectively. And let us 

all resolve to meet the future with the 

commitment and capabilities that we 

need to provide the responsive, agile and 

innovative support that our customers 

and stakeholders expect and deserve.” LL

The authors are public affairs specialists with DLA Distribution, 

DLA Headquarters and DLA Aviation, respectively.

From left, Robert Montefour, site director, DLA Installation Support at Susquehanna; Army Brig. Gen. John S. Laskodi, DLA 

Distribution commanding general; Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy Busch, DLA director; Twila Gonzales, DLA Distribution deputy 

commander; Denis du Breuil, deputy chief of Construction-North, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District; and Army 

Col. Brad Eungard, installation commander, cut the ribbon on DLA Distribution’s new headquarters building.

To learn more or register: visit www.wwenergyconference.com Jessica Roman
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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

Story by Dianne Ryder

Photos by Phil Prater

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE

Transcending the

Spoken

Word

Business analyst Jarvis Beaver uses expressive body language to teach agency students American Sign Language.

I

mproving communication among 

the workforce has long been a goal 

of the Defense Logistics Agency, and 

employees over the years have asked for 

instruction in American Sign Language to 

help them communicate with their deaf 

and hard-of-hearing co-workers.

In October 2016, the DLA Equal 

Employment Opportunity Office began 

free on-site ASL classes for employees at 

the McNamara Headquarters Complex.

“For years, people had inquired about 

it,” said Vanessa Schaffer, one of four sign 

language interpreters in DLA’s EEO Office.

Schaffer said she used to refer employees to colleges or meetup groups that 

taught ASL.

 “But a lot of those programs you have 

to pay for, and that has been a deterrent for 

people,” she said.

Janice Sypolt was one of the employees 

who inquired about ASL classes.

“I really wanted to take an ASL class 

for a personal reason. One of my very 

good friends has a stepson [with] spina 

bifida, and he’s also deaf,” said Sypolt, a 

logistics management specialist in DLA 

Logistics Operations.

Sypolt said the son, Zachary, has an 

extremely positive outlook, despite all his 

medical challenges.

“The last time I went to visit him, he flat 

out asked me, ‘Why can’t you speak to me 

in my language?’ And that cut me straight to 

the heart,” Sypolt said. 

She promised him the next time she saw 

him, she would be able to sign to him, even 

if she wasn’t fluent in ASL.

When Sypolt heard about the lunchtime 

ASL classes that EEO was going to host, she 

signed up.

“I certainly expected to learn the letters, 

numbers — the basics,” she said. “I knew 

nothing, so they had to lay the groundwork.”
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

interpreter’s motions. 

“A lot of times, they’ll project the idea 

— not the exact words,” she said. “It’s 

just a beautiful language.”

The next time Sypolt had an opportunity to video chat with Zachary, she 

greeted him and signed her name in ASL. 

Zachary signed something to his stepfather that Sypolt couldn’t understand. 

When her friend translated what Zachary 

said, he told her he had to explain why she 

was signing her name, because Zachary 

already knew it!

“That was all I had learned at that 

point,” Sypolt chuckled. “It was just kind 

of funny.”

Sypolt would still like to take a formal 

ASL class and she said there had been 

discussion about DLA EEO 

providing a more advanced 

course.

“But there were so many 

people on the waiting list for 

Level I, they need to continue 

at [that level] and I get that,” 

she said. “I’m more than willing 

to go out into the community 

and just keep going because if I 

don’t use it, I will forget it.”

Sypolt said that although 

she doesn’t have any deaf 

co-workers in her immediate 

work area, she knows that 

could change.

She also said she would 

highly recommend the ASL 

course to her co-workers. 

“Yes, it’s uncomfortable, 

but any language is hard,” 

she said. “When I lived in a 

foreign country, it was always 

appreciated when I tried to 

make the effort to speak the language, 

and I think the same thing applies to ASL.” 

Given the high level of interest in 

ASL instruction, Schaffer said the EEO 

office hopes to convene another course 

in March, but it will depend on many 

factors, including availability of space 

and instructors.

Visual information specialist Angela 

Shannon served as one of the ASL 

instructors in the initial course.

Shannon was 3 years old when she 

was diagnosed with spinal meningitis 

and lost her hearing. 

“In 1965, Rubella and spinal 

meningitis were listed [among] the 

worldwide epidemics that cause 

deafness,” she said. 

She said she began to use ASL at a 

very early age.

“I grew up at a deaf residence institution, South Carolina School for the 

Deaf and Blind, and attended Gallaudet 

University [a university established for 

 Visual information specialist Angela Shannon instructs class 

in American Sign Language.

Rachel Ragen interprets for the students of the DLA 

lunchtime American Sign Language class.

The course’s construction focuses 

on work-related terms and phrases, 

because the goal is to increase 

communication between hearing and 

deaf employees in the workplace.

“From there, hopefully, you can forge 

the relationship with your co-worker, 

practice and learn more signs,” Sypolt said. 

One thing Sypolt said she learned 

through the video presentations is 

that interpretation isn’t word for word. 

Whether she’s observing interpreters at 

her church or during DLA programs, she 

said she’s gained a new appreciation 

for interpretation, though she can’t 

always match up the words to the 
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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

support,” she said. “He couldn’t believe 

his luck, because one of them was able 

to communicate with him in ASL.”

When Shannon asked if he knew who 

the members of the group were, the man 

informed her they were DLA employees. 

“I realized ASL breaks down 

communication barriers on many 

different levels at DLA — on the job, 

in emergencies and safety, in team 

building, [in service and] in resiliency 

— not only here at home, but across 

the globe,” she said. 

Shannon said she looks forward to 

hearing more inspiring stories from the 

ASL sessions.

“The deaf community is a tight, closeknit family, and sharing information 

is sacred,” she said. “When we can 

communicate efficiently with each other 

in more than one way, DLA thrives.” LL

From left, Towana Barnett, Defense Technical Information 

Center, Christopher Kehoe, DLA Equal Employment 

Opportunity Office and Janice Sypolt, DLA Logistics 

Operations, participate in the DLA lunchtime American Sign 

Language class.

deaf students in Washington, D.C.], so 

my native language is ASL,” she said. 

“As a visual information specialist at 

DLA, I prefer to use ASL interpreters to 

communicate, to prevent any misunderstanding and to provide the best visual 

products to DLA’s [customers].” 

 Shannon has also taught several ASL 

courses throughout her nearly 30-year 

federal career at DLA.

“[During the] last few years, I have 

tapped into interpreting for deaf/blind at 

conferences,” she said. “It’s been pretty 

mind-blowing.” 

Shannon said once students get past 

the initial awkwardness, the learning 

process is eye-opening, for her as well 

as for the students. 

“ASL changes the way one would 

think as opposed to other spoken 

languages; it’s almost as if your mind 

goes into a 3- or 4-dimenision virtual 

reality, just using your hands,” she said. 

“Unfortunately, some of us forget some 

signs as soon as the 

class is over with. 

Finding someone to 

talk to in ASL is the 

most important [part] 

in keeping up with 

your signing skills.”

Sypolt reinforced 

this advice. For 

refresher training, she 

often refers to the 

book she was given 

during the class and 

watches online videos 

used in the class to 

demonstrate signing techniques.

“Because you want to engage in 

water cooler conversation; you don’t 

want to talk work all the time,” she said. 

“You’d like to be able to say something 

like, ‘Hey, how was your weekend?’” 

Shannon said she would definitely 

consider teaching another course, 

and said the ASL class is a great way 

to network.

“It’s a smart investment, and I have 

met amazing people 

from all walks of life. It’s a 

beautiful thing,” she said. 

Shannon said she 

appreciates the EEO 

interpreters and fellow 

instructors Jarvis Beaver 

and Helen Yu, “who 

led the ASL class with 

dignity and pride.” 

She relayed a story 

she had heard about a 

deaf man in Haiti who 

lost his way during the 

2016 hurricane. 

“He was hurt, but he managed to 

walk for what seemed like miles until he 

found a group [providing] humanitarian 

“I realized ASL breaks 

down communication 

barriers on many 

different levels at DLA 

... not only here at home, 

but across the globe.”

 — Angela Shannon

Signing requires the use of 

facial expression, motion 

and space to provide the 

full context of the speaker’s 

conversation. The American 

Sign Language class DLA 

provides helps students 

to see the full range 

of movements that give 

each sign action a specific 

meaning in the conversation. 
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

Shared 

Harvest

Agriculture’s Food Distribution Program 

on Indian Reservations, serving more 

than 92,000 participants, most of whom 

live in rural areas.

To help FDPIR participants get access 

to fresh produce, Defense Logistics 

Agency Troop Support’s Subsistence 

supply chain plays a crucial role. Since 

1994, DLA Troop Support has worked 

with the USDA Food and Nutrition 

Service to handle several logistical tasks 

for FDPIR — tasks DLA also performs 

through the Department of Defense 

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.

FDPIR operates across the United 

States, with most sites west of the 

Mississippi River. Participants must 

meet income requirements and not be 

participating in USDA’s Supplemental 

Nutrition Assistance Program in the 

same month.

A Pleasant Surprise

The Shoalwater Bay Reservation, 

on the central coast of Washington, is 

about 30 minutes from the towns of 

Raymond and Aberdeen. To the south 

is the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, 

home of one of North America’s last 

Story by John R. Bell

T

o many, America’s Great Northwest may come to mind as one 

of abundance — of salmon, 

software and the Space Needle.

Yet there are Americans in this region 

and other areas of the United States who 

struggle to get a variety of nutritious food 

for themselves and their families — or 

enough food at all. This is particularly true 

for fresh fruits and vegetables.

One option for American Indians and 

Alaska Natives is the U.S. Department of 

DLA AND USDA HELPING TRIBES 

PROVIDE FRESH PRODUCE

four subspecies of elk. 

American Indian tribes are very much 

a part of this region. Native Americans 

live on and near several reservations in 

the area — including the Shoalwater Bay 

Tribe Reservation, where Titiana Burks 

loads boxes into her vehicle at the tribal 

food center.

Burks has Alaska Native heritage but 

has lived in Washington state almost all 

her life. She participates in the FDPIR to 

help feed her family of five. 

“This helps my family out tremendously, versus any other programs,” 

she said. “Each box is a surprise, I call it, 

because I don’t know what I’ll get ... but I’m 

very thankful for what I get.”

She’s a particular fan of the fresh 

fruits and vegetables she gets through 

FDPIR. 

“I love it,” she said. “It’s kind of like 

harvesting them out of the garden 

Michael and Jo Maxwell and their children Darcilena and 

Santiago Jansen receive fresh fruits and vegetables provided 

through DLA contracts, along with other foods, through the 

Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations of the Small 

Tribes of Western Washington in Lakewood. 

Bob Nichols
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March / April 2017

without having a garden. My kids love 

the food.”

The fruits and vegetables are 

especially welcome because she’s trying 

to promote good dental health in her 

three children, she said. 

Without the program, “I would 

probably go down to the local food bank 

and wait,” Burks said. “But I know this 

food is healthy and low-sodium.”

The food is a needed resource for her 

family of five, “and usually it’s just at the 

right time,” she said. “We utilize all the 

food we get.” 

The Fruit Network

The seeds of DLA’s involvement 

in FDPIR were planted in 1994, when 

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service began 

to work with DLA to supply fresh fruits 

and vegetables to schools. FNS had 

realized DLA Troop Support’s contracts 

with small regional wholesalers/

distributors of fresh fruits and vegetables 

were the perfect way to help Native 

American tribes get those foods, 

said Patricia Scott, chief of DLA Troop 

Support’s Customer Operations Garrison 

Feeding Division. 

That year, a USDA/DLA pilot project 

began, with $3.6 million of funding and 

serving eight states. The DoD Fresh 

Fruit and Vegetable Program, commonly 

known as “DoD Fresh,” was made 

official in 1996 and now serves schools 

in 48 states, as well as Guam, Puerto 

Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the 

District of Columbia. 

In FDPIR, FNS acts as the program 

manager, Scott explained. For FDPIR and 

its other USDA Foods programs, FNS buys 

a variety of healthy foods in many food 

categories in full truckload quantities from 

farmers across the nation, via USDA’s 

Agricultural Marketing Service. But for 

smaller amounts of fruits and vegetables, 

USDA did not have contracts set up with 

the regional distributors. 

“The DLA Subsistence produce 

contracts were the right fit for supplying 

smaller amounts of a wider range of 

fruits and vegetables to these remote 

areas,” Scott said. “DLA’s buying power 

Peter Kent

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2 www.dla.mil

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

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LOGLINES

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Collards to Kale KEEPING IT FRESH

Carrots are just one of the hundreds of fresh produce items DLA 

Troop Support provides to customers, including dining facilities, 

ships, Veterans Affairs hospitals and civilian elementary 

schools through the DoD Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program.

of Defense Fresh Fruit and Vegetable 

Program. Each team covers a geographic 

area and includes a supervisor, a group of 

tailored vendor logistics specialists that 

handle contracting and cataloging issues 

at DLA Troop Support’s headquarters in 

Philadelphia, and field reps who monitor 

quality and customer satisfaction. 

Customers include dining facilities, 

schools and child care centers on military 

installations, as well as ships, Veterans 

Affairs hospitals, Native American 

reservations, federal prisons and civilian 

elementary schools. Troops are DLA’s 

No. 1 priority, but supporting schools is 

more of a logistical challenge, compared 

to other customers, Wilmoth said.

“You may go on a base and have 

three to 23 dining halls, but one 

school system might have 20 or 120 

schools. Also, schools aren’t required to 

participate. They may enroll one year and 

choose not to the following year,” he said. 

Schoolhouse Subsistence

After studies in the early 1990s 

confirmed children weren’t eating 

enough fresh fruits and vegetables, 

Congress gave the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture the responsibility of getting 

more produce into schools through 

the National School Lunch Program. 

USDA wasn’t set up to handle produce; 

however, the closest it got to fresh was 

canned ham or peaches in corn syrup. 

State commodity officials like Gary Gay 

were skeptical. 

“Could we really do it? We didn’t 

have any reference point to lean on,” 

said Gay, director of the North Carolina 

Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Division.

DLA had proven its ability to provide 

fresh produce to service members 

around the globe, so USDA officials 

turned to DLA’s subsistence experts for 

help. Their conclusion: It didn’t make 

sense to copy something that was 

already being done. “Let’s partner,” USDA 

officials said.

In 1994, DoD and DLA agreed with 

USDA to a pilot project in which DLA 

supplied fresh produce to schools in 

eight states, the same way it did military 

installations. USDA officials worked with 

dieticians and DLA reps to determine 

what items would be sent to which 

schools and when. The first year, schools 

received more than $3 million in produce. 

Parents and teachers praised the 

program, and in 2010 it was expanded 

to include the 48 contiguous states, the 

District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the 

Virgin Islands and Guam.

“It really shows where two federal 

agencies can work together toward a 

mutual outcome,” said Patricia Scott, 

DLA Troop Support’s chief of garrison 

Two days’ worth of munitions removed during “ammo 

abatement” process to ensure vehicles are free from 

dangerous items before DEMIL work begins. Items shown 

include smoke grenades and .50 caliber rounds.

Story by Beth Reece

Beth Reece

Beth Reece

K

en Wilmoth is browsing the 

produce department at his local 

Wal-Mart when he catches a 

woman suspiciously eyeing blood 

oranges. She picks one up, squeezes 

it, sniffs and drops it back in the bin. 

“Ma’am, they’re supposed to look like 

that,” Wilmoth pipes up. “When you cut 

them, they’re going to be blood red on 

the inside. They’re really sweet and have 

twice the vitamin C as your California 

oranges. Don’t just look at them and 

assume they’re bad.”

He also tells shoppers how to select a 

ripe cantaloupe or honeydew and shares 

his recipe for microwaved sweet onions. 

Wilmoth has loved fruits and vegetables 

since spending his childhood summers 

hawking zucchini and cabbage from 

his dad’s roadside produce stand. Now 

he shares his passion and knowledge 

with military dining facilities and school 

cafeterias on behalf of Defense Logistics 

Agency Troop Support’s Subsistence 

supply chain.

Based in Gloucester, Virginia, 

Wilmoth leads one of six garrison feeding 

teams that carry out the Department 

Beth Reece

DLA Troop Support’s Ken Wilmoth, who leads one of six garrison 

feeding teams that carry out the DoD Fresh Fruit and Vegetable 

Program, inspects tomatoes destined for elementary schools at the 

prime vendor’s location in Greensboro, North Carolina. 

— Photo by Beth Reece

page

3

FOR MORE ON THE DOD FRESH PROGRAM

see “Collards to Kale” in the

January−February 2017 issue of Loglines

Small Tribes of Western Washington’s David Gibson helps Titiana Burks

collect her food order at the STOWW distribution center in Lakewood.
page

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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

received,” usually with an on-site visit. 

The program “is very well managed,” she said. The USDA and DLA 

personnel “do a lot with the nutrition 

part of the program ... with making 

sure clients get a good variety of items 

and making it healthy.”

Serving Their Communities

Many Native Americans give back 

to their communities by working for 

organizations that receive and distribute 

food received through FDPIR. Melvin 

Nelson is a warehouse worker and 

driver for the Southern California Tribal 

Chairmen’s Food Distribution Program. 

He’s also a veteran of the Navy Seabees 

and a Navajo. 

He noted that the program is a vital 

lifeline for low-income families, especially 

when they first arrive in the area or don’t 

have access to a car.

“They’ve got to start somewhere, 

so I think this program really helps them 

out,” he said. “You’ve got to eat something 

before you get started doing anything else.”

David Gibson, also Navajo, is the 

assistant director and warehouse 

manager of the commodity food program 

at STOWW. 

“This program provides a stable food 

base for our clients,” he said. “Many of 

them are Native, and a lot of them are 

non-Natives,” he said.

Gibson noted that many of the 

tribes served by STOWW don’t have any 

grocery store nearby. 

“So we’re bringing food to them that 

they would otherwise have to drive a 

great distance to get,” he said.

He recalled his childhood visits to see 

his grandparents, who lived on a reservation in New Mexico and relied on FPPIR. 

“We would drive 60 miles to the nearest town to get their commodities,” Gibson 

said, but back then, there were no fresh 

fruits and vegetables — only dry goods. 

The current FPDIR “is a lot of better 

of a program,” Gibson said. Overall, “the 

produce is of very good quality. It rivals 

anything in a store.”

In addition to the actual food, FDPIR 

offers nutrition education from members 

of the community.

enables all customers in each contract 

zone to get the same delivered price 

and highest quality produce from our 

contracted vendors.”

DLA Troop Support has long had a 

network of produce wholesalers, with 

about 80 small businesses serving DLA 

contracts across the nation. 

The agency also monitors the quality 

of the produce, through personnel such 

as DLA Troop Support’s Michael Espinoza, 

a DLA subsistence representative who 

serves sites in Southern California. 

Each site has DLA customer service 

representatives assigned to it.

“I go out and make on-site visits to 

both military and non-military customers 

and make sure quality is up to par,” he said.

Benita Richotte-Lewis is the FDPIR 

director for the Small Tribes of Western 

Washington, in Lakewood, and is also 

a Native American. STOWW serves 14 

tribes in this part of the state, as well as 

six in Southeast Alaska and two on the 

Aleutian Islands.

“We have two customer reps from 

DLA,” Richotte-Lewis said. “And when 

we’ve had maybe some small issues with 

either the quality of the produce or how it 

was received on the truck, we were able 

to contact the representatives at DLA. 

... And they’ll take a look at what we’ve 

“DLA’s buying power 

enables all customers 

in each contract zone to 

get the same delivered 

price and highest quality 

produce from our 

contracted vendors.”

 — Patricia Scott

Small Tribes of Western Washington, based in Lakewood, is 

one of 125 Native American organizations with members 

whose fruits and vegetables are delivered by regional produce 

companies working on DLA Troop Support contracts as part of 

the USDA Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations. 

Peter Kent
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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

“We’re able to meet our clients face 

to face,” Richotte-Lewis explained. “We’re 

able to help them pick out their food. 

We explain the products to them and ... 

what’s available to them.”

In the area STOWW serves, deliveries 

usually become a community event, Gibson 

said. In one location, residents welcome 

the STOWW delivery staff with lunch they 

prepared using food from the program. 

“That really means a lot to us,” he said.

Online to On-Plate

FDPIR serves 102 American Indian 

tribal organizations and three state 

agencies, representing 276 tribes and 

more than 92,000 participants. Each tribe 

uses an online catalog, the Fresh Fruit 

and Vegetable Order Receipt System 

(known as FFAVORS) to choose foods for 

its participating members each month. 

“Each vendor offers a catalog of fresh 

produce and pre-cut items, which can be 

viewed by the customers in their contract 

zone,” Scott explained.

Then, the regional produce distributors 

buy the produce requested on the 

FFAVORS order from local farmers 

and deliver it to each Native American 

organization’s chosen distribution point, 

such as a gymnasium or community 

center. Participants pick up the food 

at the central site, although for elderly 

residents or those with disabilities, 

some tribes deliver food directly to the 

participant’s home.

About 125 of those 276 tribes are 

served by a produce wholesaler working 

under a DLA contract. DLA encourages 

these vendors to buy as much local 

produce as possible.

Communities can use the FFAVORS 

catalog to choose what they want 

from a list provided by USDA. Because 

all food must be sourced from the 

United States (in accordance with 

the Berry Amendment), foods not 

available from U.S. growers, such as 

bananas, are not on the list. However, 

a wide variety is available, from 

staples such as potatoes and onions, 

to greens and citrus fruits. More 

recently, lemons and cranberries have 

been added.

In addition, FDPIR offers traditional 

American Indian foods like bison and blue 

cornmeal, Gibson said. In the Northwest, 

canned salmon is a local favorite.

“[Blue cornmeal is] a Navajo staple. 

Small Tribes of Western Washington employees sort 

recently delivered boxes of food to be picked up by 

program participants.

Vicki White (left) receives a box of fruits and vegetables at 

the Small Tribes of Western Washington’s food distribution 

site on the Shoalwater Bay Reservation. 

Peter Kent

Peter Kent
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

It mixes up into a breakfast cereal, into a 

drink — and you can make some good 

muffins with it,” he said.

The program has grown steadily 

over the years, Scott said. Over the 12 

months beginning in July 2015, DLA 

contracted for $9 million in fruits and 

vegetables for FDPIR.

Depression-Era Roots

FDPIR and its sister USDA food 

programs began in the 1930s as a 

reaction to the Great Depression, 

according to USDA’s history website. The 

Agriculture Act of 1935 funded the USDA’s 

purchase of surplus crops from U.S. 

farmers, whose plight was memorialized 

in works like John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes 

of Wrath.”

A decade later, the War Department 

— on the cusp of its postwar 

restructuring and rebranding to become 

DoD — found that many would-be 

military recruits for World War II had 

been ineligible because they were 

malnourished and too underweight.

So in 1946, the National School Lunch 

Act provided funds for USDA to buy food 

and distribute it to public schools. The 

Agriculture Act of 1949 gave the USDA 

funding and authority to expand that 

service to American Indian reservations. 

However, at that time, the primary mission of USDA food programs was still to 

buy excess supply, rather than to feed 

needy Americans.

That changed in January 1961, when 

President Kennedy issued an executive 

order calling for a “positive food and 

nutrition program for all Americans.” 

Then in 1966, the Child Nutrition 

Act and later amendments further 

codified the importance of nutrition 

in child development and created or 

extended several nutrition-focused 

federal programs. The FDPIR began in 

1977, but DoD did not become officially 

involved until 1996.

Apples and Oranges

Vicki White is a senior citizen whose 

family, members of the Choctaw tribe, 

moved to the area from Oklahoma. She’s 

grateful for the fruits and vegetables she 

gets from the food center at STOWW, 

through the FDPIR. 

“I get oranges and apples. And 

grapes, if they’re available,” she said. “If 

I can’t eat the apples — because I have 

false teeth — I always give them to 

somebody who really likes apples. I have 

a neighbor who has multiple sclerosis, 

and I give them to her.”

“I love cauliflower and cabbage to 

make coleslaw and cabbage soup,” 

White said. “Especially when it comes 

to the carrots and the celery, because 

... you need those and the onions and 

everything. So with STOWW, I have 

enough that I can make good soup that’ll 

last me almost a week.” 

“I’m not eligible for food stamps or any 

other kind of help,” she noted. Without the 

USDA/DLA program, “I wouldn’t be able 

to buy as much food, because it’s just too 

expensive for me.”

Angelina Phansisay, who is Chinook, 

also picks up produce for her children as 

well as elders in her community at the 

STOWW center. 

“It’s more than awesome to be able to 

have fresh fruit,” she said. “It means a lot, I 

couldn’t be more blessed.” LL

David Gibson (right) reviews a food order with participants 

at the Small Tribes of Western Washington food distribution 

center in Lakewood.

Peter Kent

For more about the Food Distribution Program on 

Indian Reservations, check out this on-location 

video that includes interviews with participants and 

several DLA Troop Support personnel, available on 

DLA’s YouTube channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcTI5HbmZBM
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Protecting Critical 

Information

Story by Dianne Ryder

Photos by Matt Baker

D

o you practice good operations 

security? It’s a prevalent theme 

throughout the Defense Logistics 

Agency — echoed on posters, screen 

savers and flyers throughout the 

agency’s headquarters. 

Stephanie Samergedes, director of 

DLA Intelligence, said many employees 

misunderstand what her office does. 

“We are about information protection, 

whether it’s classified or sensitive,” 

she said. “People think OPSEC is only 

important during wartime, but we have 

to protect indicators over here, too.”

OPSEC indicators are seemingly 

innocuous actions and open 

sources of information that 

adversaries can use to extract 

critical information and possibly 

cause harm to national security.

Samergedes said her team, 

which includes DLA OPSEC 

program manager Joan Daigle 

and HQC program manager 

Matt Baker, attempts to raise 

employee awareness about 

OPSEC best practices.

“We try to do a lot of training 

with security representatives to 

make sure they understand what’s 

considered critical information,” 

Samergedes said. 

But OPSEC is everyone’s 

business, even if individuals 

don’t recognize their personal 

responsibility, she said.

“Everybody practices OPSEC. If 

you’ve ever planned a surprise party, 

you’ve had to plan the event, get the 

cake, make sure the celebrant is unaware 

of the plan — that’s all OPSEC,” she said. 

The DLA Intelligence office is required 

by a Department of Defense directive 

to conduct surveys every three years to 

enhance mission effectiveness. 

“This fiscal year, we’ve asked an 

outside activity, the Joint OPSEC Support 

Element, to conduct OPSEC surveys for 

us,” Daigle said. “It’s helping us focus our 

program more — that’s the goal.”

“Surveys help identify systemic issues 

and determine policy changes,” Baker 

said. “JOSE helps identify vulnerabilities, 

reinforce strengths and customize 

training.” JOSE is part of the Joint Chiefs 

of Staff’s Joint Information Operations 

Warfare Center.

Lee Oliver, chief of plans and 

operations for JOSE, defines his 

organization’s role as “a second set of 

eyes” to identify vulnerabilities and helps 

agencies define critical information. 

“People have to understand that 

there is a threat; there is an adversary 

that wants our information,” Oliver said. 

“What may appear to be mundane pieces 

of unclassified information all become 

pieces of a puzzle.”

Oliver said that while each individual 

“puzzle piece” may seem unimportant, 

when adversaries collect them, the 

little pieces come together to form the 

critical-information big picture.

“You may not think it’s important, 

but what does the adversary think 

about?” Oliver said. “Logistics is 

a major part of everything we do; 

from the smallest widget to largest 

end item, there’s information out 

there that the adversary can use to 

effectively stop major operations.”

The surveys reproduce the 

adversary’s capabilities and help 

determine if DLA’s critical information 

is being disclosed through normal 

operations and functions. 

“They’re looking at the things 

that we do day-to-day,” Daigle 

said. “Do I throw all my work in the 

trash can? Do I talk about critical 

information or privacy information in 

unencrypted communications?”

EVERYONE PLAYS A PART

OPSEC is a systematic, proven process to identify, 

control and protect generally sensitive but 

unclassified information about a mission, operation 

or activity, and thus, denying or mitigating an 

adversary’s ability to compromise or interrupt that 

mission, operation or activity.

For additional information 

JP 1-02, Department of Defense Dictionary

of Military and Associated Terms

www.dtic.mil/doctrine/new_pubs/jp1_02.pdf

THINK OPSEC

WHAT IS OPERATIONS SECURITY? 
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

“Understand what your command 

has identified as critical information and 

refer to the critical information list,” he 

said. “It’s an order from the commander 

or the director [of the organization].”

Encrypting emails is another crucial 

line of defense in protecting information. When employees attempt to 

send an encrypted email to a colleague 

but encounter an error message that 

the recipient can’t receive encrypted 

communications, Oliver said the 

temptation is to send the information 

unencrypted. 

“You can go to the global directory 

and pull the recipient’s certificate down,” 

he said. “Or ask them to send you a 

digitally-signed email; then you have 

their certificates.”

Though it may seem inconvenient 

to digitally sign and encrypt emails, it 

deters the enemy. “If it’s hard for you, 

it’s hard for the bad guy,” Oliver said.

“We don’t want to advertise 

everything we’re doing,” Daigle said. 

“We want to use secure means to 

communicate to the workforce.”

This information can include anything from supplies on hand, lack of 

The assessments allow JOSE to help 

DLA refine training and planning and set 

up countermeasures using an adversarial 

perspective, Daigle said. 

There are some common practices 

that employees should be aware of and 

improve, such as email encryption and 

use of secure phone lines; especially 

when employees are discussing mission 

information, shortages or vulnerabilities.

“Even though it may not be classified, 

that information is still susceptible to 

collection,” Daigle said. 

Survey teams have also uncovered 

“For Official Use Only” documents 

and other pieces of critical or privacy 

information in the trash when they 

should be shredded, Daigle noted.

“And it should be shredded with a 

cross-cut shredder, not a strip shredder,” 

she said. “We’re finding several strip 

shredders — and we shouldn’t even 

have those anymore.”

If employees don’t have access to 

a shredder, they should use a burn bag 

if available at their location — even for 

unclassified information.

Oliver said JOSE uses DLA as a 

“shining example,” particularly in regard 

to the success of its shred program. But 

he admits, “Everyone has their policies 

— but not everyone follows them.”

All organizations should have a clearly 

defined policy on what information 

should be shredded and what should be 

recycled. But when in doubt, Oliver said 

employees should contact their agency’s 

OPSEC coordinator.

Part of Joint OPSEC Support Element agents’ assessments 

is “dumpster diving” to determine if critical information has 

been compromised. 

Encrypting emails is another crucial line of defense 

in protecting information.
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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

supplies, details about procuring 

product, or even system changes, 

she said. Just as diversionary tactics 

are used when transporting fuel 

and weapons on the battlefield, DLA 

employees should use best practices to 

thwart technological attacks.

Daigle also emphasized the importance 

of protecting personally identifiable 

information, or PII, which includes contact 

information, credit card numbers, Social 

Security numbers and personal addresses. 

“Adversaries may be collecting 

information for years,” she said. “They’re 

trying to find the weak links.”

Oliver reiterated that most adversaries targeting defense systems do 

so through open source information, 

to include social media and dumpster 

diving. He said they aren’t likely to 

risk prosecution by trying to obtain 

classified information. 

“We live in an open society now; 

everything is free information flow and 

no one thinks that what they have is 

something an adversary wants,” he said. 

“Because [in most people’s minds], there 

isn’t an adversary — but there really is.”

“The more we can protect in our 

normal operations, the better off we are 

in the future as well,” Daigle said. 

Oliver, who has worked with OPSEC 

for more than a decade, said he has 

noticed a marked improvement in DLA’s 

OPSEC program.

“[DLA] had a good program to begin 

with, but it was just getting the point 

across,” he said. “It just keeps getting 

better and better.” 

He attributes the improvement to 

increased leadership involvement.

“To say, ‘Do OPSEC,’ doesn’t mean 

anything. You have to tell them what it is 

you want and how you want them to do 

it,” Oliver said. “They have to understand 

they are part of a bigger picture.” LL

A Joint OPSEC Support Element agent weeds through 

documents that have been thrown away.
What’s the most common misperception people at DLA 

have about the field of public affairs — its role in the 

agency, what it does and doesn’t do, and the people 

who do this job?

I’ve worked in public affairs for about two decades, 

in and around DoD and other government agencies. 

I’ve seen the same misperception again and again: 

people think public affairs officers can control what 

the media writes. What a good PAO can do is shape 

the discussion with reporters and news outlets. 

What we can’t do is keep reporters from doing what 

good reporters do, which is talk to other sources. 

News reporting is going to present more than one 

side of a topic. Real news lets us hear from subject 

matter experts from at least two perspectives, 

maybe more. The PAO’s job is to make sure 

A Conversation with ...

 Joe Yoswa reporters provide information that’s in context, 

balanced and accurate and properly characterizes 

their organizations. It is not to tell the reporter what 

to say, or how to say it or who to interview. 

We also do a lot of reputation building for our 

organizations. In today’s digital environment, we 

have many more outlets to use in telling our story: 

Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, our homepage (www.

DLA.mil) — it’s almost limitless. We send news 

releases to commercial news organizations to get 

the word out. Our goal is to amplify our presence 

with our customers and stakeholders while reaching 

audiences that are unfamiliar with DLA. The 

contributions of our public affairs staffs across the 

enterprise give us content that reflects our work and 

builds our reputation as an agency.

How does DLA Public Affairs help those who carry out 

DLA’s operational mission — such as the logisticians, 

acquisition specialists and the contracting folks?

Our goal is to use our operational events to 

communicate what we do. We also have a 

responsibility to communicate our strategy. So we’ll 

develop content using the operational missions 

we perform to inform our entire workforce, our 

customers and our stakeholders of our strategy. 

Our strategy focuses us on what we, as an agency, 

The director of DLA Public Affairs talks 

about how the written word helps DLA 

promote its values and build reputations.

Joe Yoswa, director, DLA Public Affairs.

John Bell

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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY
Pitch your idea to 

us, and do it early, 

too. It’s very hard 

to cover an event 

if you’re being told 

the day it happens.

 — Joe Yoswa

want to accomplish. By telling stories about our 

operational efforts — how we plan and execute 

those efforts — we reflect the agency’s strategic 

goals (Warfighter First, People and Culture, Strategic 

Engagement, Financial Stewardship and Process 

Excellence). These stories help personalize our 

strategy, letting our employees and other audiences 

see how the strategy is in everything we do. When 

you communicate the strategy this way, it becomes 

more engaging.

If you go to the Strategic Plan online (www.

dla.mil/info/strategicplan), you can read 

the stories that support our goals. I think 

employees like hearing about how DLA 

supported the Ebola crisis, or national 

emergencies like hurricanes Matthew or 

Katrina. Even reading about our day-today business of feeding and supplying our 

warfighters, no matter where they are. 

You’ve served in uniform as an artillery 

officer and as a civilian leader. How do 

those roles differ, and what do they have 

in common?

Being an artillery officer was a great 

way to prepare me as a public affairs officer. Mainly 

because both artillery and public affairs require 

planning and timing to achieve the proper effect. As 

an artilleryman, a lack of planning or improper timing 

can cause catastrophic effects by placing rounds on 

friendly forces. 

It’s the same with communication. If a story runs 

but no one reads it, or we make a video and no 

one watches it, did your message hit the target 

audience? You have to ask yourself constantly: 

When should this story run? Where can we place it? 

Is it something everyone in the agency is required to 

know? Or is it only a small group of employees that 

need the information? 

Through planning we figure out what needs to be 

told and who needs to hear it. And timing is putting 

the right information in front of our audiences so 

they can respond to it or know what is happening. 

In some cases, we are the reinforcing fires to the 

messages our leaders and managers are providing 

to our workforce. 

In both cases, it’s a balance between planning and 

timing. And when you get this right — “boom,” 

you’re on target!

Since you were at Soldiers magazine, how has 

magazine and web publishing changed?

When I was working there, online magazines 

were just starting. No one really had an idea of 

how print and web were going to work together. 

I’m not sure it’s any clearer today, either. 

Everyone is still experimenting. 

The biggest challenge then was 

getting my magazine team to write 

for the web. Most of them had 

written for magazines well over 

a decade, if not multiple decades. 

Considering that transition — digital 

— was radical. Print was sacrosanct; 

they thought I’d lost it. 

Today, Soldiers is only available as an 

online magazine; Loglines is still in 

print and we’re beefing up our online 

presence. We have a large part of our 

DLA team on the warehouse floors 

across the agency, and they don’t always get a 

lot of computer time. I expect the print version 

to be around awhile.

I think the online-print dynamic will continue to 

play out for the next few years. Print products 

have a different use from online products; 

they’re more about marketing and awareness 

over time. They’re reminders of what you can 

find online. As I said, that’s still playing out. 

It would be great if our readers gave us some 

feedback and told us if they like our print or 

online products better. 

How does the written product directed at a potentially 

worldwide audience — as with Loglines and stories 

on DLA.mil — differ from command information?

Good question. At their foundation, all public 

affairs products are command information 

products; both Loglines and DLA.mil serve 

that function. I hope everyone knows what 

“command information” means — providing 

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LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017
our workforce 

information on the 

agency’s goals, 

developments 

affecting them and 

DLA, increasing their 

effectiveness as 

DLA ambassadors 

and keeping them 

informed about 

what’s going on in 

the agency.

When I started in 

the Army, many 

years ago, command 

information was 

distinctly different 

from public information. It passed through 

outlets that primarily served a military 

audience: service magazines, division 

newspapers and, for those overseas, Armed 

Forces Radio and Television and Stars and 

Stripes. Public information was passed 

through the commercial news media or as part 

of a community relations program with the 

surrounding municipalities. 

The World Wide Web changed all that. The 

information we now provide to our workforce 

is easily available to the public. This is a huge 

benefit to us as an agency as we work with a 

larger number of partners and agencies. Our 

“command information” or news stories not 

only reach our workforce and families but also 

our customers, stakeholders, other government 

agencies and organizations that want to work 

with DLA — even Congress.

Since you started your career, you’ve seen the advent 

of web publishing and the mainstreaming of social 

media. What trends or changes do you see emerging 

in public affairs over the next few years?

I’m older than that! I’ve seen us move from word 

processors, to desktops and then laptops. Now 

DLA Information Operations is talking about 

“thin clients” and “the cloud”! I’ve seen the 

shift in broadcast from three major networks 

with news at 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. to CNN and the 

“around the world, 

around the clock” 

24-hour news 

cycle. And I’ve 

seen a worldwide 

network of 

newsrooms shrink 

again to a few key 

cities and reporters 

become paid news 

bloggers who 

shape opinions 

instead of provide 

news updates.

But if you stop 

and think, it’s 

something we’ve 

been through before, just on a larger scale. At 

the turn of the last century, printing presses 

became smaller and more affordable; anyone 

could print a newspaper and get paid for their 

writing. For those rags or tabloids, accuracy 

wasn’t required, and it’s not required now for 

blogs or other forms of social media. 

Anyone with an account can post or comment 

to social media; there’s no filter, no automatic 

fact check, no one looking to make sure the 

information is correct or even useful beyond 

the entertainment value or the ability to stir 

up opinion. 

Our department, civilians and military members, built 

a reputation for credibility because of an adherence to 

honesty. The American public consistently rates the 

military as the most trustworthy institution; I believe 

PAOs help develop and maintain that standard.

What can the other parts of DLA do to help DLA Public 

Affairs tell their story?

A good story is a good story. Pitch your idea 

to us, and do it early, too. It’s very hard to 

cover an event if you’re being told the day it 

happens. Each primary-level field activity has 

a PA staff. My staff supports headquarters 

and the regional commands. Reach out, and 

we’ll help tell your story, which in turn is the 

DLA story. LL

Joe Yoswa uses an oversize printers loop to examine details on an insert for Loglines.

John Bell

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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY
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LOGLINES

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March / April 2017

Defense Supply Agency Director Army Lt. Gen. Andrew 

McNamara visits the DSA offices in Battle Creek, Michigan, 

for the dedication of the Defense Logistics Services Center in 

February 1963.

 HISTORY OF THE

Federal Catalog 

System

director of procurement, part of the 

Procurement Division of the Treasury, 

worked with the head of each agency to 

consolidate all items for the catalog into 

one list. 

That list underwent a few name 

changes over the next few decades to 

become the Federal Standard Stock 

Catalog. In 1935, this catalog had 

155,000 items. 

An archival document from 1978 

referred to this early catalog as “almost 

useless because its use was optional.” For 

example, the catalog and its supplements 

after 1935 had 350,000 items listed. Of 

these, 120,000 items were duplicates, 

meaning only 230,000 unique items 

were listed. This represented only 7.7 

percent of the 3 million items used by all 

agencies of the federal government.

The Wild West of the Federal 

Catalog System

During World War II, an enormous 

number of new items came into the 

military supply systems, each of 

which had its own method of identification, classification and numbering 

for items of supply. These competing 

cataloging systems lacked uniformity 

Story by Chrissie Reilly, DLA Historian

Photos Courtesy Tim Hoyle and Ken MacNevin

DLA Disposition Services

T

he Defense Logistics Agency’s 

Logistics Information Services is 

responsible for the management 

and operation of the Federal 

Logistics Information System, which 

incorporates the data requirements 

for cataloging, supply and other 

logistics support for the Department 

of Defense, civil government agencies 

and participating NATO countries. 

The Federal Catalog System 

manual from 1959 acknowledged that 

government is “the most complex of all 

business organizations.” However, the 

modern system of a centralized agency 

like DLA, with comprehensive cataloging 

for items across the government, did not 

accidentally develop. Much like DLA’s Audit 

Readiness efforts, the federal catalog 

system was the result of concerted effort 

from thousands of employees throughout 

the federal government. 

The origins of the Logistics Information Services mission began more than 

a decade before the Defense Supply 

Agency, DLA’s predecessor organization, 

was founded.

Origins of a Consolidated 

Catalog System

Over a century ago, the Department 

of the Navy initiated the Naval Depot 

Supply and Stock Catalog in 1914. This 

was the closest thing to a uniform 

catalog system at the time. 

In the 1930s, supply and demand 

became more integrated as the assistant 

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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

U.S. Standard Commodity Catalog Board 

submitted a plan for a uniform Federal 

Catalog System to President Harry 

Truman in July 1946. 

Genesis of the Modern Federal 

Catalog System

The government finally met its 

goal of a centralized catalog — but it 

was only the beginning. Much as DLA’s 

Audit Readiness campaign has evolved 

into the agency’s Process Excellence 

initiative, the new catalog system needed 

further development and continued 

interdepartmental cooperation and joint 

working agreements to be usable and 

relevant to its proponents and customers. 

After World War II, a peacetime 

government recognized it would be 

better for agencies and departments not 

to compete for the cataloging, storage, 

acquisition and distribution of supplies.

The Federal Property and Administration Services Act of 1949, also known 

as Public Law 81-152, established the 

Federal Catalog System. The first federal 

stock number was assigned by the ArmyNavy Munitions Board in 1949. 

A congressional resolution from 1950 

declared the interests of national defense 

and effective personal property management demand that a single standard 

federal supply catalog be developed. 

The original catalogs were indexed and cross-referenced by 

hand without the aid of computers. 

and were largely unable to be used 

across platforms. 

As practical as the concept for 

a unified system was, it was not 

uniformly applied, as it was only used 

by the military services for some items, 

but not others. The Bureau of Supplies 

and Accounts, the Quartermaster 

Corps, the Marine Corps and the 

Coast Guard used the system for the 

cataloging of general issue items (at 

least until the Quartermaster Corps 

bowed out to use its own system). The 

remainder of the government bureaus, 

services, the Ordnance Department 

of the Army and the Army Air Forces 

used one or more different systems of 

identification and classification. 

Duplication was both costly to the 

economy and dangerous to national 

security. In January 1945, President 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt instructed the 

director of the Bureau of the Budget to 

implement a U.S. Standard Commodity 

Catalog. The multiple systems were 

consolidated over the next several 

months, to include facilities and services 

in addition to the catalog itself. Agencies 

from throughout the government were 

to use the interim system to the fullest 

extent possible. 

While not yet a governmentwide 

catalog, it was extensive enough, and the 

During 1952, 

approximately 39,000 

items per month were 

identified and assigned 

unique federal 

identification numbers.

Hard copy catalogs were created and send to Department of 

Defense and other government agencies for their ordering needs. 
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LOGLINES

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March / April 2017

Congress enacted Public Law 

82-436, Defense Cataloging and 

Standardization Act, in 1952 to establish 

a single cataloging system within DoD to 

ensure economical, efficient and effective 

supply management. It further required 

that each item repeatedly purchased, 

stocked or distributed by the government 

have a unique identifier.

The law was primarily intended to 

streamline the supply process in DoD, but 

it also extended into civil agencies and 

even foreign governments.

So although the Federal Catalog 

System initiative was ahead of schedule 

in 1952 and 1953, the influx of over 1.25 

million additional items from military and 

civilian agencies meant the cataloging 

took until 1956 to complete. During 1952, 

approximately 39,000 items per month 

were identified and assigned unique 

federal identification numbers. 

Indexing and Cross-Referencing

Indexing the Federal Supply Catalog, 

though time-consuming, was needed 

to make items easier to find. Creating 

the index was a step-by-step process 

going through the entire Federal Supply 

Catalog. It meant employees assigned 

to this project had to work systematically through different classes of supply. 

Food was indexed first, followed by 

clothing, then medical items. Other 

commodity areas followed, and all were 

indexed by 1952.

This indexing is still in place today. 

Customers can search for items by name, 

manufacturer, colloquial term or even 

function. In the early years of supply 

catalogs, this was not possible. 

As items were being ingested into 

the Federal Catalog System, a crossreferencing project was also underway 

to identify items by reference to manufacturers’ names and numbers, eliminate 

duplication, create interchangeability data 

and make it available across the complete federal enterprise. 

Defense Logistics Agency’s Role 

In 1958, DoD established a new 

agency in Washington, D.C., called the 

Armed Forces Supply Support Center, and 

gave it the responsibility for managing 

the Federal Catalog System.

DoD moved the Federal Catalog 

System and the Armed Forces Supply 

Support Center into the newly created 

Defense Supply Agency in 1961. The 

Armed Forces Supply Support Center then 

became the Defense Logistics Services 

Center and relocated to Battle Creek, 

Michigan. Advance elements arrived in 

mid-1962, and DLSC became fully operational in Battle Creek in January 1963. 

Thanks to the cataloging program, 

all similar items in the government 

are now described and identified 

the same way. From its beginnings 

in the First World War to its robust 

and efficient contemporary version, 

the federal catalog system helps 

government agencies operate 

effectively and in unison — thanks 

to the hard work of people at the 

Defense Logistics Agency. LL

DLA employees continue the responsibility of maintaining 

and updating the federal supply catalog.

DLA SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION AND RESPONSE PROGRAM

ELIMINATE SEXUAL ASSAULT • KNOW YOUR PART • DO YOUR PART

WWW.DLA.MIL/INFO/SAPR/ 

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SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS 

AND PREVENTION MONTH
DLA NewsWire

DLA POLICE REUNITE MISSING 

MAN WITH FAMILY

Police at Defense Supply Center Columbus responded to 

a call at the Yearling Road Gate Jan. 18 after a disoriented, 

elderly man walked onto the installation trying to get to his 

father’s house. 

Officer David Webb was the first on site and realized it was 

not a normal situation; Sgt. Jerry Pyle arrived shortly after. 

“The only information he could tell us was his age, 70. He 

couldn’t tell us his birthday, where he was from or anything 

else,” Pyle said. 

The officers were able to obtain his driver’s license and 

ran it through the database, which provided an alert for a 

missing person. 

Family had reported the man as missing from Massillon, 

Ohio, roughly 48 hours prior and noted he suffers from 

dementia, high blood pressure and early-onset Alzheimer’s 

disease. He had also been without his medicines for 

approximately 36 hours. 

The family was notified that their missing relative was 

found, and they immediately headed to the installation. 

The previous day, police had discovered his vehicle on 

Interstate 670. He had run out of gas, grabbed his gas can 

and started walking. He was wandering around the city for 

almost a full day before he arrived at the DSCC gates. 

Lt. Harry Salcone said the officers’ training was helpful 

in the situation. One of the initial responding officers 

recognized the lights and sirens were causing unnecessary 

agitation, for example. “Webb took action and turned 

off the overhead — reds and blues — which calmed 

the man’s anxiety and improved the situation almost 

immediately,” Pyle said. 

Salcone also spoke on the response team’s actions. 

“This is what I would call excellence in action,” he said. 

“These officers and sergeants responded to an unknown 

situation, made an evaluation and brought the situation to 

a logical conclusion. They train for situations like these, but 

to see it implemented and the positive outcome is what 

this job is about.” 

— Dana Thornbury, DLA Land and Maritime

More online: go.usa.gov/x9t4U

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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY
BITUMINOUS COAL REMOVED 

FROM SHUTTERED POWER 

PLANT WITH HELP FROM DLA 

DISPOSITION SERVICES

A labor-intensive project to remove roughly 18 million 

pounds of bituminous coal from the Navy’s last coal-fired, 

steam-producing power plant at Naval Surface Warfare 

Center Indian Head in Maryland is now over, thanks to help 

from Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services.

The site opened as a gun-testing range on the Potomac 

River in the late 1800s and morphed into the home of 

Navy explosive ordinance disposal research by the 21st 

century. For many decades, the engineers and scientists 

who worked with volatile materials used steam heat in 

their explosives research facilities to minimize the 

opportunities for accidents. 

The plant closed a few years ago, but a football-fieldsized pile of coal remained until Navy officials turned 

to DLA for a solution in 2015. DLA Disposition Services 

personnel helped facilitate removal of the coal by creating 

and awarding a one-time hazardous sale to Penn Keystone 

Coal Co., saving the Navy more than $6 million. 

“The cost savings alone is astronomical,” said Dan 

Bryan, an agency environmental protection specialist 

who helped coordinate and monitor more than 300 

pickups by the contractor. 

The only expense incurred by DoD was for the rental 

of a special front-end loader to help accommodate Penn 

Keystone’s 10-truck-a-day removal pace.

“This was a long-term operation that easily could 

have broken down and gone sideways,” Bryan said. “We 

stayed on top of it and removed this coal in a consistent and reliable manner.”

Navy facilities officials will soon begin soil remediation to 

ensure there is no long-term impact on the environment.

— Jake Joy, DLA Disposition Services

More online: go.usa.gov/x9t2x

DLA DISTRIBUTION AWARDED 

FOR REDUCING ENERGY USE

Defense Logistics Agency Distribution Oklahoma City, 

Oklahoma, received the 2016 Federal Energy and Water 

Management Award for reducing energy use in eight 

facilities by converting from steam heating to natural gas.

The project included the replacement of steam unit 

heaters with infrared radiant heaters in warehouse areas 

and the replacement of steam to hot-water converters with 

high-efficiency condensing hot-water boilers in office and 

service areas.

The activity saved almost $700,000 in utilities from the 

prior year and reduced energy use by 27 percent.

— DLA Distribution Public Affairs

More online: go.usa.gov/x9t4m

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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

Warrant Officers

WOs to bring their knowledge of military 

operations and established relationships 

to DLA. On returning to their units, they 

bring back an in-depth knowledge of 

DLA demand forecasting, procurement 

systems and contracting. All for the 

benefit of providing and improving 

warfighter support. 

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Larry Lyons 

serves at DLA Energy Pacific at Okinawa, 

Japan, as a plans and operations officer 

for a defense fuel support point for 

bulk-fuel receipt and storage, as well as 

inventory management and distribution. 

He oversees six fuel terminals, 78 miles 

of pipeline, 56 million gallons of bulk fuel 

storage and the Pacific Command War 

Reserve in support of all Department of 

Defense activities in Okinawa. 

“I chose to be a warrant officer 

because I wanted to be a technical 

subject matter expert in my field,” he 

said. “As a petroleum systems technician, 

I’m an expert in fuel, water and the lab 

testing of fuels.”

“Through progressive levels of expertise in assignments, training and education, we administer, manage, maintain, 

operate and integrate Army systems and 

equipment across the full range of Army 

operations,” he said. “I am the go-between 

for enlisted service members and commissioned officers. I am the expert adviser 

to the commissioned officers who come 

to me for the right answer.” 

Lyons serves as a DLA liaison for U.S. 

military services, elements of the Japan 

Self-Defense Forces and other island 

partners, facilitating support of joint fuel 

requirements and ensuring strategic plans 

and operations are compliant with U.S. 

and host nation policies and regulations. 

He recently helped a field unit 

solve a fuels problem that was 

affecting their trucks and their ability 

to complete their missions. 

“They were having issues with fuel 

commingling with water and sediment,” 

Lyons said. “We provided lab sampling 

equipment and a monthly test of all fuel 

trucks in their fleet to ensure their fuel 

was suitable for use.” 

He said he also provided expert 

fuel guidance on sampling and testing 

of their petroleum vehicles and 

Story by Cathy Hopkins, DLA Aviation Public Affairs

D

efense Logistics Agency’s warrant 

officers are few in number, 

averaging only 17 Army billets 

and one Marine Corps billet, but their 

impact is felt throughout the enterprise. 

Touching almost all activities and 

locations, DLA’s WOs are critical in 

supporting commanders, service 

members and other DLA customers. 

Warrant officers, nearly all of whom 

begin as enlisted service members, are 

technical specialists in their fields, from 

legal assistance to veterinary services. 

They serve in branches such as logistics, 

aviation, military intelligence, ordnance, 

transportation, signal and cyber. In 

the Army, some aviation warrants fly 

helicopters and planes. 

The joint two-year assignment allows 

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Larry Lyons (blue helmet) serves at 

DLA Energy Pacific at Okinawa, Japan, as an operations 

and plans officer for bulk fuel receipt, storage, and inventory 

management and distribution. Part of his responsibilities 

are to help administer a six-month augmentee program 

where DLA Energy Pacific at Okinawa gives fuel Marines 

a chance to learn pipeline, lab, tanks, bunkering and tank 

gauging operations. 

Courtesy Photo

LEADERS • MENTORS • TECHNICAL EXPERTS

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

recommended replacing the filters and 

recirculating the fuel to ensure this 

problem didn’t occur again.

While Lyons is involved in fuels 

delivery, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Joseph 

Giles has served as chief of aerial delivery 

for DLA Distribution in Susquehanna, 

Pennsylvania, since 2014. 

Giles, a WO for 14 years, manages 

the only aerial delivery warehouse in 

DLA. As the principal airdrop advisor to 

the DLA Distribution commander, he 

provides receipt, storage, control and 

shipment of over 15,000 mission-critical 

material-release orders annually for all 

armed services branches, federal and 

civilian agencies, foreign military services 

and multiple combatant commands 

stateside and overseas. He manages 

over 850 national stock numbers valued 

at $450 million and ensures logistical 

continuity between DLA, the TACOM 

Integrated Logistics Support Center and 

the aerial delivery community.

Giles recently helped provide replacements for 200 unserviceable parachutes 

the 82nd Airborne Division needed to 

continue its global support mission. 

“There wasn’t enough time to turn 

in unserviceable parachutes and receive 

replacements with current business 

rules,” Giles said. “So within one week, 

we provided a solution where personnel 

from the 82nd were able to drive to 

Pennsylvania, turn in the old and get the 

replacement parachutes to meet their 

mission deadline.” 

Not only do DLA’s WOs help stateside 

customers, they also deploy wherever 

DLA has a worldwide presence. Chief 

Warrant Officer 3 Scott Kjendlie deployed 

as an operations officer on DLA Support 

Team–Afghanistan, a position normally 

reserved for a commissioned officer in 

the rank of major.

Kjendlie, a WO for 10 years in the 

armament field, is deputy chief for land 

customer operations in the Weapon 

Systems Support Management Division 

at DLA Land and Maritime, Columbus, 

Ohio. “We not only provide specific field 

technical expertise, but we also provide 

leadership to enlisted and junior officers 

and serve as our commander’s ‘honest 

broker’ and ‘ear to the ground’ in terms of 

the maintenance of our specialized field,” 

he said.

DLA Troop Support has several WOs 

in its ranks, including Chief Warrant 3 

Jemme Neal, a veterinary food inspector 

before she became a warrant officer and 

a food safety officer. Neal initially wanted 

to be in the officer corps, but the only 

officers in the veterinary service were 

veterinarians or warrant officers. She 

wanted to say focused on food safety, 

food defense and food quality, so she 

applied to become a warrant officer. 

That way, “I could continue to develop 

myself as a technician,” Neal said. 

“Typically, my job involves developing 

food inspection and training programs 

while serving as the technical expert to my 

commander,” Neal said. 

Her specialty has allowed her to travel 

throughout the Midwest, deploy to Iraq in 

support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and 

New Dawn and help DLA provide disaster 

relief in Haiti and in New Jersey following 

Hurricane Sandy. 

During her DLA assignment in 

Philadelphia as a consumer safety officer, 

Neal is issuing food recalls, providing 

food safety advice and conducting audits 

of Market Fresh and Prime Vendors in 

conjunction with the U.S. Department 

of Agriculture and the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Association, to 

ensure compliance with contractual 

requirements. As a joint officer, she is also 

learning the contractual processes to take 

that knowledge back to the veterinary 

corps to improve their DLA programs. 

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Eugene 

Garcia, who works for DLA Troop Support 

in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as a 

veterinary food safety officer, describes 

WOs as integrators. Garcia has only been 

with DLA since July. He’s already making 

an impact interacting with customers in 

the field to solve their problems relating 

to meal rations. 

Chief Warrant 3 Kenneth McCutcheon 

works in biomedical acquisitions with 

One Warrant Officer helped Fort Hood, Texas, 

divest of 243 vehicles and 31,400 other items.

Courtesy Photo

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Joseph Giles makes his last 

parachute jump on July 6, 2016 at Pappy Tidwell Drop Zone, 

Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. After serving as a warrant 

officer for over 14 years, the last three with DLA, Giles is retiring 

from active duty in February 2017 and will continue providing 

warfighter support in his new DLA position as a supervisory 

general supply specialist at DLA Distribution Susquehanna.
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

AMERICA’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

He’s a conduit for Army interactions 

with DLA and its primary-level field 

activities. He’s also the wholesale 

logistics point of contact for 427 Army 

weapon systems and issues affecting 

Army material readiness. 

Harris is working with Department of 

the Army and the Army Materiel Command on the “All Army Excess” project, to 

synchronize DLA acceptance of all Army 

excess equipment as it downsizes. 

Most recently, he worked with the Fort 

Hood, Texas, senior mission commander 

to help DLA in synchronizing the AAE 

project. He helped the fort’s organizations 

divest of excess equipment totaling 243 

vehicles and 31,400 other items.

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Tim Robinson 

also works at DLA headquarters as a 

legal administrator in the Judge Advocate 

General’s Corps. He oversees the daily 

activities of the Office of General Counsel, 

managing office staff and automated systems, as well as budgets and contracting. 

Robinson said he joined the WO 

corps after a friend became a legal 

administrator. Robinson wanted to stay 

in the JAG Corps, but he didn’t want to 

become a lawyer. 

“Becoming a WO was the next best 

thing. I’ve never regretted my decision,” 

he said. “Although WOs make up less 

than 3 percent of the Army’s total 

strength, we have a great responsibility 

From right: Army Chief Warrant Officer 4 Kevin Ryan and 

Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jacqueline ElazierAllison brief Army Col. Mark Hirschinger, Craig Hughes and 

George Johnson, the chief, deputy division chief and force 

provider, respectively, of DLA Aviation’s Army Customer 

Facing Division, on aviation metrics at Defense Supply Center, 

Richmond, Virginia. 

Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jacqueline ElazierAllison, operations officer in-charge, and Marine Corps Maj. 

Christopher Story, executive officer of the DLA Aviation Marine 

Corps Customer Facing Division, discuss aviation weapon 

system statistics at Defense Supply Center Richmond, Virginia.

Jackie Roberts

Jackie Roberts

one of DLA Troop Support’s forward-deployed customer support cells in Fort Detrick, Maryland. He’s been a health service 

maintenance warrant officer nine years 

and serves in a hybrid position providing 

customer service support and helping 

customers develop their requirements. 

McCutcheon chose the warrant 

officer corps because of the leadership 

opportunities it offered and the impact he 

felt he would have on the field.

“My role is to understand issues 

brought to my attention and provide 

resources [or] information, or [help]

develop a plan to solve the problem or 

further refine it,” he said. 

McCutcheon recently finished working 

on a project with Army Medical Materiel 

Agency-Defense Health Agency and Keller 

Army Community Hospital at U.S. Military 

Academy, West Point, New York, to 

replace its computed radiography unit in 

conjunction with another renewal project. 

“They notified us in March that they 

needed a contract awarded in July for an 

August delivery and a November go-live 

time,” he said. “Normally it would take us 

8-10 months, but we were able to turn it 

around in under 90 days.”

He said the collaboration was time 

sensitive and complex. In addition, 

McCutcheon said the team was able 

to capitalize on a parallel Voluntary 

Incentive Agreement Program through 

DHA that allowed West Point to upgrade 

their system at no additional cost. 

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Arthur Harris 

works for the Army Team in the Materiel 

Management Office at DLA Logistics 

Operations, with DLA’s headquarters at 

Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Harris entered the 

WO ranks in the quartermaster corps to 

become an expert in the logistics field. 

Harris is the DLA Army national account 

manager and an Army readiness officer. 
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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

March / April 2017

that includes training soldiers, organizing 

and advising on missions and advancing 

with our career specialties.”

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael 

Jackson serves in the aviation branch of 

the Army WO corps at DLA Aviation in 

Richmond, Virginia, as a readiness officer. 

He tracks rotary wing aircraft status for 

the Army fleet and provides the aviation 

community global logistics support.

While WOs can serve in many capacities, Jackson, an aviation maintenance 

technician since 2008, said he chose the 

corps to become an expert in his field 

and to continue learning as much as he 

could while executing a broad spectrum 

of duties. 

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Kevin Ryan 

also works in Richmond as an aviation 

readiness officer. Ryan provides a direct 

link between Army aviation warfighting 

customers and the DLA Aviation 

workforce. He said he helps develop 

continuity to ensure positive, proactive 

solutions that support DLA’s most 

important asset, the warfighter. 

“I’ve been there, in need of support. 

It is critical that [DLA] provide outstanding 

service to those in the fight or to those 

conducting everyday operations within 

our aviation community,” he said.

Ryan believes the key to success as 

a warrant officer is to educate and give 

sound technical and tactical advice. 

“In my position, I have the capability 

of reaching out to a large spectrum of 

Army aviation. That isn’t taken lightly. 

I feel there is a certain responsibility to 

do my absolute best to support those in 

need,” he said. 

Ryan developed an outreach program 

where Army personnel travel to the 

customer to ensure DLA Aviation is 

meeting their needs. 

“If we need to go to a location to 

improve our support, that is what we are 

willing to do,” Ryan said. 

He’s also incorporated tools he 

used in previous assignments, like fleet 

readiness dashboards and performance 

scorecards, to help DLA’s civilian 

workforce understand their impact on 

warfighter support and supply support 

activity warehouse performance. 

As the only Marine Corps warrant 

officer in DLA, Chief Warrant Officer 3 

Jacqueline Elazier-Allison occupies one 

of the newest joint military billets in 

DLA, joining the staff this past October. 

She’s attached to the Aviation Customer 

Focused Intelligence Team in the 

Marine Corps Customer Relationship 

Management Cell of the DLA Aviation 

Customer Operations Directorate. Her 

job is to enrich historical forecasts with 

customer requirements. 

A LITTLE HISTORY ABOUT THE WARRANT OFFICER

According to the Warrant Officer Historical Foundation, the rank of warrant 

officer is one of the oldest in Western military systems, dating to the founding of 

the British navy. These sailors, referred to as “boat mates” or “bosun’s mates,” 

became indispensable to less experienced commissioned officers and were 

rewarded with a Royal Warrant to set them apart from other sailors, but not 

violate the strict class system of the time. 

In July 1918, the U.S. Congress established the Army Mine Planter Service 

as part of the Coast Artillery Corps, headquartered at Fort Monroe, Virginia. In 

doing so, it also established the rank of warrant officer and directed they serve 

as masters, mates, chief engineers and assistant engineers of each vessel. The 

vessels were responsible for mine defenses in major ports during World War I. 

Congress, in 1920, expanded the use of warrant officers in clerical, administrative 

and band leadership positions.

Elazier-Allison has field experience 

she brings to DLA from her previous 

jobs. She has 27 years’ experience in the 

aviation supply operations career field 

with 11 years as a warrant officer. She 

has two combat deployments. 

“My level of experience affords me the 

opportunity to work with and mentor lieutenants and captains,” she said. “It’s all about 

relationship building and earning respect.” 

Whether forecasting demand for 

aviation support packages, troubleshooting 

meal rations, solving fuel problems, 

running a legal office or arranging unique 

procurement solutions for replacement 

parachutes, DLA’s WOs are making a 

big impact and playing a critical role in 

warfighter support as leaders, mentors 

and technical experts. LL

A LOOK AT

DLA AVIATION’S RETAIL SUPPORT FOR 

INTERCONTINENTAL 

BALLISTIC MISSILE 

PROGRAMS

Coming next issue ...
page

cover4 WWW.DLA.MIL

LOGLINES

THE RIGHT SOLUTIONS — ON TIME, EVERY TIME

My name is:

Laurie Darrisaw

I am:

An equal employment opportunity specialist and training coordinator in the DLA 

Aviation Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity Office at Defense Supply Center 

Richmond, Virginia. 

Describe your job in a sentence: 

I am the training coordinator for my office, and I handle EEO complaints from all DLA 

Aviation employees in Richmond and at our forward sites. 

How long have you worked at DLA?

I began working for DLA in October 1985 as an inventory management specialist at 

the Defense Electronics Supply Center in Dayton, Ohio (which combined with DLA in 

Columbus, Ohio, in 1997). I came to DLA in Richmond in April 1998. 

What is your favorite thing about working for DLA? 

Working with people and helping them resolve stressful 

situations, and imparting information to the workforce on the 

complaint process and EEO’s role.

What are your best memories of working here?

Meeting my husband. We met here in July 2000. He 

has since retired, and we’ve been happily married for 

almost 13 years. 

How do you make a difference?

I make a difference by educating the workforce on 

various aspects of EEO laws and the policies. It is fulfilling 

to teach employees and managers about EEO and assist 

them with resolving stressful issues. 

Laurie Darrisaw

I AM DLA