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WeSalute Awards

TopVet: John Mitas, M.D./Teaching Doc

John A. Mitas II, M.D., has been appointed deputy executive vice president and chief operating officer of the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine (ACP-ASIM), the nation’s largest medical specialty society and second-largest medical group. Its membership comprises more than 115,000 internal medicine physicians and medical students. Internists are specialists in the prevention, detection and treatment of illnesses that primarily affect adults. He will join the college staff on July 1, 2002.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Michael Bilirakis, Congressman

Michael Bilirakis, Republican Congressman from Tarpon Springs in Florida’s 9th District, was first elected to Congress in 1982 and has been reelected to each succeeding Congress.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Joan Furey, Veterans Affairs

Joan A. Furey was appointed the Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs' Center for Women Veterans in May 1995. In this post, she is the primary advisor to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on all women veterans' issues and the effectiveness of VA programs, practices, and policies designed to address them.

CDR Randy "Duke" Cunningham flew in an adversary squadron flying Russian tactics while training Navy pilots at the famed "Top Gun."

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Randy Cunningham, Top Gun Congressman from California

In 1966, at the age of 25, Los Angeles native Randy Cunningham joined the Navy. It wasn’t long before he became one of the most highly decorated pilots in the Vietnam War. As the first fighter ace of the war, he was nominated for the Congressional Medal of Honor and received the Navy Cross, two Silver Stars, 15 Air Medals and the Purple Heart, among other decorations.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Wharton B. Rivers, Jr., Advanced Radio Telecom

Wharton B. “Zie” Rivers, Jr., a retired Army Officer, joined Advanced Radio Telecom in November 2000 as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Rivers spent 20 years in the Army, serving - and excelling - in a variety of command and high-level staff positions, culminating in his assignment as a strategic policy specialist for the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Pentagon. Prior to joining Advanced Radio, he had more than a decade of experience in executive management roles for some of the most prominent telecommunications companies in the U. S.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Governor of California

Gray Davis entered active duty in the U.S. Army in December of 1967, rose to the rank of Captain while serving in Vietnam in 1968-69. A life member of both the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars, Gray is the highest-ranking Vietnam veteran currently serving in California State Government

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: John Patrick, IBM

As IBM's chief Internet technology officer, John Patrick leads the company's efforts in conceiving and developing the next generation of Internet products and processes.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Rodney Frelinghuysen, Congressman

Four-term Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen is a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, where he serves on a trio of subcommittees: Defense; Veterans, Housing, Environment and Independent Agencies; and Energy and Water Development.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Roger Staubach, Hall of Fame Quarterback

Roger Staubach, whose college coach called him “the greatest quarterback Navy ever had,” won the Heisman trophy in 1963 as a junior when he led the Midshipmen to a 9-2 record and the No. 2 national ranking. As “Roger the Dodger,” the scrambling, strong-armed quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys during the glory years of the 1970s, he led “America’s Team” to six National Football Conference championship games, winning four of them, and to victories in Super Bowls VI – he was also named MVP in that game – and XII.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Charlie Norwood, Georgia Congressman

Charles Whitlow Norwood, Jr. - he prefers Charlie - was born in Valdosta, Georgia, in 1941. After graduating from Baylor Military High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 1959, Charlie received his bachelor’s degree from Georgia Southern University in Statesboro in 1964, and a Doctorate in Dentistry Sciences from Georgetown University Dental School in Washington, D.C., in 1967. He was elected president of the student body at Georgetown in his senior year.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Max Cleland, Georgia Senator

Lt. Cleland volunteered for duty in Vietnam in 1967. In 1968, after having been promoted to captain, he was grievously wounded by a grenade explosion that cost him both legs and his right arm.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Christos Cotsakos

E*Trade has gained a reputation for revolutionizing online stock trading and financial services, and Christos Cotsakos, its Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, has gained recognition as its pioneering visionary and head honcho.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: James W. Jarrett

As Vice President, Legal, and Director of Worldwide Government Affairs, James W. Jarrett is responsible for Intel’s relationships with governments across the globe. Before assuming his current position, he was President of Intel China for four years.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Barron Hilton, Hilton Hotels

Barron Hilton saw service as a photographer in the United States Navy during World War II before joining Hilton Hotels Corporation.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Charles B. Rangel

Charles B. Rangel is serving his seventeenth term as the congressman from northern Manhattan, an area that comprises Harlem, Washington Heights, and the Upper West Side.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: John Bach, Assistant Coach, NBA

Michael Jordan brought back John Bach to help coach the young and maturing Washington Wizards, for whom Michael came out of retirement this year to play. Bach is 77 now, a Navy veteran of the Second World War; he is in his 50th year coaching hoops.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Charles Patrick Garcia, Investment Fund Manager

Mr. Garcia graduated from the Air Force Academy, where he became the fourth highest-ranking officer in his class, leading over 4,400 cadets.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: LTG (Ret.) Emmett Paige, Jr., OAO Corporation

When 16-year-old Emmett Paige, Jr. dropped out of high school in 1947 to enlist in the Army, he likely had little inkling that he would begin a career of military service that would span 41 years, and then some.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Congressman Sam Johnson

Texas Republican Congressman Sam Johnson has represented the 3rd Congressional District since winning a special election in May 1991.

Military & Veterans Life

TopVet: Herman Wouk, Author

Eighty-six-year-old Herman Wouk is one of the most prolific and insightful novelists writing today. His books have populated the best-seller lists for the past five decades.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: David Rots, Kmart Corporation

David P. Rots is the Executive Vice President in charge of Human Resources and Administration for Kmart. Prior to joining Kmart in July 2000, he had been Vice President of Human Resources for Parke-Davis, a division of Warner-Lambert. Previously he held senior-level human resources posts at Whirlpool, SmithKline Beecham, and Pfizer.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Arturo R. Moreno, the "Billboard King"

Mr. Moreno, known as Arte, served in Vietnam. He began his career as a billboard salesman in 1973 and joined up with Bill Levine in 1984, serving as President and Chief Executive Officer of Outdoor Systems.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Heather Wilson

Heather Wilson, a 1982 graduate of the Air Force Academy who saw service in Europe, has represented New Mexico’s First Congressional District since winning a special election in June 1998. The first woman since George Lusk in 1948 to serve in Congress from her state, Ms. Wilson also is the first woman veteran to serve in Congress.

WeSalute Awards

TopVet: Ralph Crosby, Northrop Grumman

Ralph Crosby is a corporate vice president and President of the Integrated Systems Sector of Northrop Grumman Corporation. Based in Dallas, the sector is an aerospace systems integration enterprise in which airborne systems and subsystems are designed, developed, produced, and supported. Previously, Mr. Crosby was corporate vice president and general manager of the company’s Commercial Aircraft Division.

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