Look what was Awarded to me!

The Essayons Award

April-June 2006
The Army Engineer Association (AEA) unveiled a new
award at ENFORCE 2006 to recognize the Engineer
spouses of our Regiment. For many years, the defleury
medal has been used to recognize our Soldiers for their
contributions to the Regiment. Now we have the Essayons
Award that pays homage to all the great spouses across the
Engineer Regiment. The Essayons Award application will soon
be posted to the AEA Web site.
The AEA established the Essayons Award to honor
spouses who have voluntarily made significant contributions
to the morale, welfare, and spirit of engineer units and
organizations. In order to maintain the value and prestige of
the Essayons Award, we have established criteria that must be
met in order for a nomination to be approved.
- The nominee should be the spouse of an engineer
Soldier or engineer Department of Defense civilian.
- The nominee’s spouse should be a member of AEA.
- The nominee should be a spouse who has voluntarily
provided significant contributions and support to the
Engineer Corps, engineer units, engineer families, and/
or multiple communities.
- Most importantly, the spouse must possess qualities
that set the individual apart from other Engineer Corps
spouses or their peers.
- Spouses associated with Active, Reserve, or National
Guard units are eligible. Retired individuals are also
eligible.
The award will not be presented as an “end-of-tour” award
that recognizes performance/contributions made during a
single assignment. The presentation of the Essayons Award
to the recipient should be scheduled during very special
events such as formal dinners, retirements, and similar affairs.
The Story of the Essayons Award T.he Engineer Regiment presents the EssayonsAward
to acknowledge our Spouses’ outstanding dedication,
devotion, and selfless service to the Engineer
Regiment. This award honors those who embody the “Let Us
Try” spirit and have voluntarily made significant contributions
to the morale and welfare of engineer Soldiers
and families.
The Essayons Award is rich with symbolism. The Blue
Service Star is representative of Army lineage and represents
their Soldier’s service to country: A blue star (loyalty,
sincerity, justice) upon a white field (hope, purity, truth). The
red border represents valor and hardiness.
There are three links that connect the castle to the Blue
Service Bar, representing the unbreakable bond between the
Spouse, the Soldier, and the Regiment.
The medieval castle is inseparably connected with fortifications
and architecture. It represents the strong home
foundation maintained by engineer Spouses.
The diamond in the center represents the foundation of
support to our Soldier. The diamond represents steadfast love.
The word “diamond” comes from the ancient Greek word
"addamas,” meaning unconquerable. The engineer Spouse’s
spirit is unconquerable and overcomes all challenges they may
encounter. Most diamonds have 58 facets, to bring out their
maximum sparkle, fire, and brilliance. Engineer Spouses are
multifaceted as well in supporting the Soldier, their family, their
unit, their community, the Corps of Engineers, and our Army.
The Essayons Award is inscribed on the back with
"ESSAYONS.” This keeps the Essayons motto near the
Spouse’s heart.
The Essayons Award is presented to the engineer Spouses
who embody this award. They represent the sacrifice,
commitment, and steadfastness of the United States Army
Corps of Engineers Regiment and the United States Army.
Lieutenant Colonel Funkhouser is the Chief of Staff at the United
States Army Engineer School, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
The Essayons

I went to a Change of Command to day, for Rob's old unit 554. Which also combined with 577. Well before the ceremony at the Engineer Museum, I was awarded this medal and plague. This award comes off the ribbon and can be worn as a pin. Took me over 21 years of dealing with the Army to get this outstanding award. LOL

"Once a Solider Always a Solider"