News release: “The nonprofit Partnership for Public Service [presented] nine Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals (Sammies) at a Washington, D.C. gala on September 15 to outstanding public servants who are making high-impact contributions to the health, safety and well-being of Americans. Celebrating its tenth anniversary, the Sammies have earned a reputation as one of the most prestigious awards dedicated to honoring America’s civil servants. The top medal, Federal Employee of the Year, will be presented to research hydrologist Paul Hsieh of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for providing critical information to help end the worst oil spill in the nation’s history, the 2010 rupture of the Deepwater Horizon oil well in the Gulf of Mexico. Additional Service to America Medals will go to federal workers whose achievements range from caring for our veterans to diagnosing mysterious diseases for long suffering patients.
Medalists come from the Departments of Justice, Treasury and Veterans Affairs, as well as the National Institutes of Health, NASA, Social Security Administration and USGS. They work in Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Houston and Menlo Park, Calif.”