Two Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support employees were recognized for their 69 years of combined service during a retirement ceremony Feb. 22.
Brian Potena, a quality assurance specialist with Industrial Hardware, retired with 38 years of service. Nancy Hildreth, a quality assurance specialist with Subsistence, retired with 31 years of service.
Army Brig. Gen. Mark Simerly, DLA Troop Support commander, presided over the ceremony and expressed his gratitude to the retirees for their role in supporting the warfighter.
“I want to thank you both for what you’ve been able to provide to us,” Simerly said.
Potena first entered federal service as a plumber at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in 1980. He joined DLA in 2004 as a product specialist before becoming a quality assurance specialist in 2005.
“I can’t believe 38 years went by just like that,” Potena said. “I met a lot of good people and I feel very blessed.”
Potena said that he’ll miss his co-workers and looks forward to travelling and spending quality time with his grandchildren during his retirement.
Hildreth entered federal service in 1986 with the Defense Contract Administration. She joined Subsistence in 1988 as a clerk and became a quality assurance specialist in 1992.
Hildreth said that her biggest contribution was the recommendation and creation of a joint services buyers guide for Subsistence items that provides a common reference for all DLA customers and vendors to quickly identify customer requirements and standards.
She said she hopes her co-workers continue to expand on those initiatives to provide even better support to the warfighter.
“It has been my honor and privilege to be a part of this organization,” Hildreth said. “As the wife of a retired Army veteran, what we do is very near and dear to my heart. Please remember who our customers are.”
Hildreth and her husband plan to move to North Carolina to help raise their grandson with their son and daughter-in-law.