Award is the highest honor state bestows on its public servants
SACRAMENTO, CA – The State of California honored 46 state employees with the Governor’s State Employee Medal of Valor Award (Medal of Valor Award) for acts of heroism. The Medal of Valor Award is the highest honor the state can bestow upon its employees, given on behalf of Governor Gavin Newsom.
“These 46 civil and public servants went above and beyond the call of duty to protect their fellow Californians, demonstrating that we are at our best when we stand up in service of others,” said Governor Newsom, who recorded a video address for the ceremony Thursday. “Their dedication is an inspiration to all of us and I thank them for their selfless acts of courage and the crucial work they do every day to support our communities.”
Actions taken by this year’s recipients include saving an individual from a shark attack; saving countless lives during the Camp and Carr Fires; stopping the bleeding of a stabbing victim; rescuing people from vehicle fires; and pulling a suicidal person from a freeway overpass which nearly resulted in the officer falling with the suicidal individual.
Recipients of the distinguished Medal of Valor awards, the level of their award and their employing department are as follows:
- Hector Villarreal, Gold, CDCR
- April Esconde, Silver, Department of Fish & Wildlife
- Nathan Smith, Gold, Department of Fish & Wildlife
- Jeff Edson, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Elliot Hopkins, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Sims Hawkins, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Joe Kennedy, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Nicholas Lopes, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Shawn Raley, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Darren Stewart, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Erich Schwab, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Byron Vance, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Jason Dyer, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Chad Burns, Gold, CAL FIRE
- Richard Siemers, Silver, Franchise Tax Board
- FannieLyn Rodriguez, Silver, Department of General Services
- Michael Basile, Gold, CHP
- Nhan Mai, Gold, CHP
- Michael Panlilio, Gold, CHP
- Alexander Stirling, Silver, CHP
- Shaun Conner, Gold, CHP
- Matthew Frattaroli, Gold, CHP
- Dionte Hall, Gold, CHP
- Aaron Maurer, Gold, CHP
- Vince Mendoza, Gold, CHP
- Robert Paul, Gold, CHP
- Michael Qualls, Gold, CHP
- Ryan Smith, Gold, CHP
- Wesley Tom, Gold, CHP
- Christopher Beehner, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Sabrina Buis, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Zackery Chambers, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Kirk Coon, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Travis Gee, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Mark Hofer, Gold & Silver, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Daniel Marinella, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Eldon McBride, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Scott Sipes, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Matthew Stalter, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Lori Martin, Silver, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Michael Van Pelt, Silver, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Ean Miller, Gold, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Chris Hendricks, Silver, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Bret Weber, Silver, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Andrew Helble, Silver, Department of Parks and Recreation
- Royce Hiner, Silver, Caltrans
The Medal of Valor Award is sponsored by the California Department of Human Resources. Award nominations are made by the employee’s department, reviewed by the statewide Merit Award Board, and selected by the Director of CalHR. Since the program began in 1959, 700 state employees have received Medals of Valor.
The award comes in two distinctions: the Special Service Award (Silver) for an act of heroism by a state employee extending above and beyond the normal call of duty or service performed at personal risk to his or her safety to save human life or state property and the Special Act Award (Gold) for an extraordinary act of heroism by a state employee extending far above and beyond the normal call of duty or service, performed at great risk to his or her own life in an effort to save human life.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, the Medal of Valor Awards were presented virtually to the recipients. CalHR Department Director Eraina Ortega introduced the agency secretaries who honored recipients by telling their brave acts of heroism. Medals were presented to the 46 individuals across eight state departments on behalf of Governor Gavin Newsom. Agency secretaries include Kathleen Allison, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR); Wade Crowfoot, Natural Resources Agency; David S. Kim, Transportation Agency; and Yolanda Richardson, Government Operations Agency.
To view the award ceremony, you can visit CalHR’s YouTube page. For more information about the award, visit the Medal of Valor website. Details of each recipient’s award will be posted to the website after the ceremony.
About CalHR
CalHR is responsible for all issues related to employee salaries and benefits, job classifications, civil rights, training, exams, recruitment and retention. For most employees, many of these matters are determined through the collective bargaining process managed by CalHR.
CalHR was created on July 1, 2012, by Governor Brown’s Reorganization Plan Number 1 of 2011. The reorganization plan consolidated the State of California’s two personnel departments, combining the Department of Personnel Administration with certain programs of the State Personnel Board. For more information about CalHR, please visit our website.