Dateline: February 7, 2008

Local clinic receives Patriot award

Clarendon’s doctor may be half way around the world, but his thoughts are certainly on home and the friends and family who are carrying on in his absence.

 This week those thoughts were evidenced by the presentation of a unique honor bestowed upon the Clarendon Family Medical Center – the “Patriot Award” Certificate of Appreciation from the National Committee of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR).

Dr. John Howard nominated his wife and office for the award, and ESGR volunteer Ben C. Pollard made the presentation Monday morning.

“When you’re over there, one of the things you worry about is what’s going on at work at home,” Pollard said. “But Dr. Howard said he has not had to worry about that.”

Howard is a Commander in the Naval Reserve and was called to active duty last spring to serve with a squadron of Marines in Iraq.

Pollard said Howard particularly commended the efforts of physician assistants David Dickinson and Devah Pittman for caring for his patients while he is away.

Howard’s wife, Lori, said he is doing well in Iraq and should be coming home soon.

“He hopes to be back in April and back to work in May,” she said.

Mrs. Howard also credited the hard work of those working at the clinic in the doctor’s absence.

“It’s a group effort for sure,” she said. “And we want to be sure to thank Dr. (Mike) Henderson, too.”

Henderson is a physician in Childress who is acting as the Clarendon clinic’s supervisor while Howard is gone.”

The Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) is a Department of Defense organization. It is a staff group within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs (OASD/RA), which is in itself a part of the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

The nation’s Reserve components (referring to the total of all National Guard members and Reserve forces from all branches of the military) comprise approximately 46 percent of our total available military manpower.

The current National Defense Strategy indicates that the National Guard and Reserve will be full partners in the fully integrated Total Force. Our Reserve forces will spend more time away from the workplace defending the nation, supporting a demanding operations tempo and training to maintain their mission readiness.

The Patriot Award is presented by the ESGR on behalf of the Department of Defense. All members of the National Guard and Reserve forces are eligible to nominate their employers for the certificate.

The nomination is subsequently used by the local ESGR Committee as the basis for consideration to receive higher level awards.