Barton, Selfridge Airmen win PA awards

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  • 127th WIng Public Affairs
SELFRIDGE AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Mich. --  A Michigan Airman has been named the top broadcaster in the Air National Guard.

Tech. Sgt. Rachel Barton, a member of the 127th Wing at Selfridge Air National Guard Base was named Broadcaster of the Year in the National Guard Bureau's annual media contest, which reviews the work of Public Affairs Airmen from units across 54 U.S. states and territories. Barton also won first place in the contest's video spot production category for a 30-second video she created promoting the Air National Guard as America's "Proven Choice."

Barton also earned third place honors in the graphics illustration category for the image she created that was used as a billboard to promote the 2014 Selfridge Open House and Air Show.

"There's such creative work being performed across the (Air National Guard) public affairs career field promoting what our Airmen do," Barton said. "I'm honored to have been named the top this year."

Barton has won several honors in the NGB contest over the last several years, including finishing in second place in the broadcaster of the year competition in 2012.

For the 2014 awards announced this week, the 127th Wing won honors in seven different categories, making at least the fourth straight year the Michigan wing has had the most, or tied for the most, awards in the contest.

"This is a testament all the units in the 127th Wing who reach out to Public Affairs and include us their mission planning efforts early on to maximize our ability to get great coverage of their Airmen," said Penny Carroll, 127th Wing chief of public affairs. "The work done by Tech. Sgt. Barton and her fellow Public Affairs Airmen at Selfridge help our family, friends and neighbors to understand our mission and our role in defending our nation."

Other 127th Wing honors award winners were:

· Tech. Sgt. Dan Heaton, who finished in third place in the ANG print journalist of the year category. Heaton won that award each of the past two years.

· Master Sgt. David Kujawa, who placed second in the feature photo category for a photo entitled "Early Morning A-10" taken while on a training exercise in Europe last year.

· Tech. Sgt. Robert Hanet, who placed second in the pictorial category for a photo entitled "A-10 In The Fog" taken in the early morning at Selfridge in January 2014.

· The 127th Wing Public Affairs office as a whole earned second place in the outstanding digital presence category for its use of the social media channels Facebook and YouTube to promote the 127th Wing story.

About the 127th Wing
Comprised of approximately 1,700 personnel and flying both the A-10 Thunderbolt II and the KC-135 Stratotanker, the Michigan Air National Guard's 127th Wing supports Air Mobility Command and Air Combat Command operations by providing highly-skilled Airmen to missions domestically and overseas. The 127th Wing is the host unit at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, which marks its 98th year of continuous military air operations in 2015.