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Maj. William Ochoa shows his 2009 Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Award to Dr. Werner Dahm, chief scientist of the Air Force. Major Ochoa received the award Oct. 9, 2009, during the HENAA conference in Long Beach, Calif. (U.S. Air Force photo)
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Pentagon major earns Hispanic award
Posted 10/14/2009
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by Master Sgt. Russell P. Petcoff
Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs
10/14/2009 - WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- A major on the Headquarters Air Force staff received a professional achievement-military award at a ceremony Oct. 9 during the 2009 Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Conference in Long Beach, Calif.
While he's honored to receive the award, he feels earning it serves others more than him.
"I consider my time in the Air Force as spent doing my job and doing my best to accomplish the mission," said Maj. William M. Ochoa, deputy chief of the Nuclear Analyses Division in AF/A9, Air Force Studies and Analyses, Assessments and Lessons Learned. "I believe this award is meant to motivate others, those who feel they are the furthest from achieving their goals.
"My Hispanic heritage as a first-generation Cuban American, coupled with this determination, serves as an example to young people of all backgrounds to set ambitious goals and stay committed to achieving what they have set out to accomplish in their lives," the major said.
Major Ochoa is a 1994 graduate of the University of Florida, where he was commissioned through AFROTC Detachment 150. He earned a master's degree from Lesley University in Cambridge, Mass., in 1998. His Air Force career includes duty as a Minuteman III missileer before becoming a C-5 Galaxy and C-21 pilot.
The HENAAC awards also honored several Air Force members as "luminaries."
According to HENAAC officials, luminary honorees are highly respected by their peers and management; are valuable authorities in their fields and are blazing the trail for future generations of engineers and scientist. Luminaries are selected from submissions received for all of the standard nominations categories.
The Air Force luminaries are Lt. Col. Karen M. Castillo, deputy director of contracting, and human resources and corporate development officer for the Air Force Office of Scientific Research in Arlington, Va.; Capt. Christine Palomo Navarro, a KC-135 instructor pilot at Altus Air Force Base, Okla.; and Michael Dominic Gallegos, chief of infrastructure management branch at Kirtland AFB, N.M.
As the deputy chief of the nuclear analyses division within AF/A9, Major Ochoa said he helps provide assessments and analytical rigor in support of the congressionally mandated 2009 Nuclear Posture Review. The division is also involved with on-going arms control negotiations between the United States and the Russian Federation to establish a follow-on to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, the major said.
"In addition to these efforts, we are involved in developing an assessment framework in order to gauge the long-term health of the Air Force Nuclear Enterprise," Major Ochoa said.
The major cites his family, former commanders and the Air Force overall as the motivators to his successful career.
"The biggest motivators in my life are my wife and our two children," Major Ochoa said. "The other large motivator in my life is being able to serve this great country and to have the privilege of being a pilot in the number one Air Force in the world.
"I have had some excellent squadron commanders throughout my years in the Air Force and have maintained relationships with some of them," he said. "Their thoughtful advice and mentorship at key decision points throughout my career have played a key role in my success thus far."
Major Ochoa offered parting words of advice to anyone wanting to succeed in their endeavors.
"Don't give up on your dreams," Major Ochoa said. "I didn't." |
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