Today is Veterans Day, a day we join together to salute all American veterans, share our appreciation for their service, and recognize the sacrifices they have made in their lives to keep America free and safe. We know there are many family, friends, partners, and customers of Carolina Advanced Digital who have represented our country in their military careers – we salute their dedication, spirit, and sacrifices.

We would also like to spotlight the contributions of our five employees at Carolina Advanced Digital who are themselves veterans and celebrate their service:

temp-veteran-michelled

Michelle Dziengel, US Air Force

Michelle Dziengel, Business Manager. Michelle is a veteran of the United States Air Force, where she was a Staff Sergeant specializing in Inventory Management and Document Control. Her service career was distinguished from the beginning, as Michelle was a Basic Training Flight Leader, Expert Marksman Medal recipient, and Air Force Basic Military Training Honor Graduate. During her four years of service with the 23rd Tactical Fighter Wing at Louisiana’s England AFB, Michelle also earned early promotion to Senior Airman, the Air Force Achievement Medal, and the Air Force Good Conduct Medal. Keeping the books running smoothly today at Carolina Advanced Digital is a task simplified by her Air Force training and service: Michelle’s thorough understanding of government purchasing and contracts means she can intuitively track and manage a purchase order from initiation to completion without hesitation. Michelle’s military service has also remained with her in the form of lasting friendships and fond memories.

 

temp-veteran-bradh

Brad Handy, US Army

Brad Handy, Network Engineer. Brad has 16 years of military service and counting, both in the US Army and currently as a Senior Communications Sergeant in the 20th Special Forces Group of the North Carolina National Guard. Brad has deployed to countries around the world during his military career, most recently returning just this past August from a combat deployment to Iraq. Brad credits his experience in the military working very closely and effectively as part of team to his smooth transition to getting the job done at Carolina Advanced Digital.

 

 

Matt Helmer, Professional Services Manager. Matt is a US Army veteran with a service record that

Matt Helmer, US Army

Matt Helmer, US Army

includes two combat deployments to Afghanistan and multiple combat awards. As a Forward Observer in combat overseas, Matt provided battlefield intelligence for indirect fire; in the United States, he provided training for peers and subordinates to do the same. His tasks in the military invariably revolved around leveraging people and technology in combination to effectively achieve mission goals, and at Carolina Advanced Digital many of his tasks are the same: Matt combines cutting edge technology from our partners with our outstanding engineering team, to enable new solutions for customers to accomplish their missions.

John Jabbusch, President & Chief Engineer.

John commenced active duty in the US Navy in late December 1975. Following approximately two years of schools and other training, he was deployed for most of the next four years: first on the USS Saratoga CV-60 attached to the Carrier Intelligence Center (CVIC), and later aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower CVN-69, also attached to CVIC. The Intel Center’s mission was to provide tactical and strategic intelligence to our  intelligence consumers, which included ship’s   company Intelligence Specialists and  Intel officers attached to the OZ (Oscar Zulu) Division, the deployed air wing including  the Air Intelligence (AI) Officers and other intelligence consumers beyond our own command. John remembers fondly, “I had a great team of guys working with me, and as a team we set service-wide records for intelligence delivery. It was a great opportunity for a young man and I learned many things from those experiences. I am proud to have been a small part of our efforts in national defense during that time.”

However my contributions pale in comparison to those of so many others including those of my late father Arthur Jabbusch who served with the USMC during WWII in the Solomon Islands campaign including, most notably, Guadalcanal. He was a member of the famed 1st Marine Raider Battalion, Edson’s Raiders, and subsequently served with the Second Marine Division. Semper Fi Dad; It was an honor to continue the family tradition of service to our country.

temp-veteran-susanj

Susan Jabbusch, US Navy

Susan Jabbusch, Executive Vice President & COO. Susan was one of the first women accepted into the US Navy Data Processing training program and began her active service attached to the Naval Intelligence Processing System Training Facility (NIPSTRAFAC), tasked with training sailors how to process intelligence data using the new-at-the-time light pen technology. In her enlistment during and after the Vietnam War, Susan was stationed in Georgia and Florida. Susan’s service was the latest in a long line of family members who answered America’s call: her father and maternal grandfather were both Navy veterans. She is proud to have continued the family tradition of service and fully appreciates that her interest and long career in IT is due to her years spent in the Navy.

All veterans gave of themselves to serve their country, which is our country, and whether they were active duty in time of war or served during peacetime, they answered our nation’s call to duty. Thank you, veterans.