SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Two Coast Guard members were recognized for their distinguished service in an award presentation made Thursday during the 80th Annual League of Latin American Citizens (LULAC) National Convention here at the Puerto Rico Convention Center.
Lt. Antonio Donis, manager of the Compass Program at Coast Guard Headquarters Office of Diversity, and Petty Officer 3rd Class Jimmy L. Rodriguez, Tactical Law Enforcement South (TACLET) team member, received awards for their distinguished service supporting the Global War on Terrorism.
“It’s wonderful to see our Coast Guard awardees receive this special recognition today,” said Rear. Adm. Ronald J. Rábago, Assistant Commandant for Acquisition and Chief Acquisition Officer for the Coast Guard. “If you look at their accomplishments they are incredibly significant, they are important to our nation and certainly very important to our Coast Guard. The diversity you see in the things that they’ve done give you some sense of what the Coast Guard is all about, which is a multi-mission service.”
During the convention, which runs from Wednesday through Saturday, 10 service members representing the other branches of the Armed Forces, including the National Guard, were also recognized for their exceptional achievements while serving the Department of Defense mission in support of the Global War on Terrorism.
“It feels great to be recognized for one’s actions,” said Rodriguez. He expressed that his accomplishments are a result of a team effort by Tactical Law Enforcement Team South. Without them, their help and their training he feels he would not have received this award. Rodriguez further stated that everything else that he has been able to accomplish has been through TACLET South, the DOG [Deployable Operations Group] and the Coast Guard.
“It was truly an honor to be honored today,” said Donis “This is one example of what the Coast Guard does, ordinary people doing extraordinary things every day, and that’s what matters!”
LULAC is the largest and oldest Hispanic Organization in the United States. LULAC advances the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, health and civil rights of Hispanic Americans through community-based programs operating at more than 700 LULAC councils nationwide. The organization involves and serves all Hispanic nationality groups.
Historically, LULAC has focused heavily on education, civil rights, and employment for Hispanics. LULAC councils provide more than a million dollars in scholarships to Hispanic students each year, conduct citizenship and voter registration drives, develop low income housing units, conduct youth leadership training programs, and seek to empower the Hispanic community at the local, state and national level,
