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Blackanthem Military News
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Last Updated:
Feb 7, 2012 - 5:42:54 PM |
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Field Artillery officer recognized for unit's training, readiness
Blackanthem Military News
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| Then-1st Lt. Neil Ravitz and his platoon sergeant, Sgt. 1st Class Joe Lukashewski, pose with three of their Iraqi translators at Camp Cuervo in Baghdad, Iraq. |
HARRISBURG, PA - Today's Pennsylvania National Guard is possibly best portrayed as a revolving door - with soldiers and airmen mobilizing to war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, returning home, and within several years doing it all again.
This high operations tempo leads to many challenges; an important one is ensuring continuity and training at home station with an oft depleted force.
A Keystone field artillery soldier was recognized, in part, for excelling with unit training, readiness and qualification requirements while many in the ranks were serving in combat.
Capt. Neil Ravitz, 32, commander Battery A, 1st Battalion, 109th Field Artillery, Plymouth, was recently honored with the Brig. Gen. William C. Bilo award for outstanding achievement in the field artillery career field.
"Capt. Ravitz is the very embodiment of a professional artilleryman and true leader in every sense of the word," said Lt. Col. Kevin Miller, 109th battalion commander.
This impressive award is matched with an equally impressive pedigree and resume. The father of two and West Point graduate joined the Army in 1999 and left to join the Guard as part of the combat reform initiative - a program to have talented active duty soldiers join the Guard - two years later. He did a combat tour in 2004-2005, and as a civilian he is a senior manager for Deloitte Consulting, where he specializes in monitoring procurement processes with Defense Logistics Agency.
As is true for many Guard members, the combination of civilian work-force skills and military background complement each other to provide unique, almost super skill sets that set them above their active duty peers.
"There is no doubt that my work here at Deloitte enhances my ability to juggle the challenges of organizing, training and equipping soldiers," said Ravitz at his office in downtown Philadelphia.
His award-winning military accomplishments include mobilizing more than half his forces as backfills for other units while qualifying Paladin firing crews, increasing military operational skill qualifications, NCO qualifications and implementing an aggressive annual training schedule.
"It was a great honor to be recognized across the states, but as a leader you can only take so much credit for what your soldiers do," said Ravitz. "The soldiers are fantastic people - salt of the earth - built on the principles of hard work, family and service."
While Ravitz gives much credit to his soldiers, there is no doubt he is of the same ilk. Born and raised in the hardscrabble mining town of Schuylkill Haven, he played high school football and went on to play at West Point.
What is even more impressive than his background, corporate ingenuity and military skills, is his leadership.
"He is admired and respected by senior, peer and subordinate alike," said Miller. By receiving this prestigious award, the Army National Guard Field Artillery community has come to discover the tremendous quality of the officer we've always known and recognized."
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