TRACY, Calif. –
Dan Borba, the operations chief for Defense Logistics Agency Distribution San Joaquin, California, recently received the Firefighter of the Year award from his work as a volunteer firefighter for the West Stanislaus Fire Protection District Station 50 in Patterson, California.
As the operations chief for DDJC, Borba serves as a key advisor to the command team on all distribution operations while being responsible for providing site performance metrics, data regarding both open and shipped workload, and oversight of associated labor requirements. In addition, Borba facilitates implementation of special projects, new missions and other headquarters initiatives.
“There’s an old saying about someone being a jack of all trades and master of none, but with Dan it’s more like a jack of all trades and master of all,” said Jodie Johnson-Micks, the deputy commander for DDJC. “He is quite literally the backbone of our distribution operation and his extraordinary leadership skills touch every aspect of our business and every success we celebrate is a direct result of his efforts.”
DDJC is continually increasing its responsibilities as the Western strategic distribution platform and Borba is integral to every new mission assigned to the organization.
During the pandemic, Borba facilitated the White House test kit support mission, where DDJC processed over 1,100 truckloads consisting of 195 million test kits. Furthermore, Borba was instrumental in setting up the F-35 North American Regional Warehouse mission.
“Both of these vital and high visibility missions came together seamlessly and were executed with flawless precision thanks to Dan’s exceptional leadership,” Johnson-Micks said. “His extraordinary leadership was essential in putting these much-needed test kits in the hands of the American public during an unprecedented global pandemic.”
As Borba is an invaluable member of DDJC, he also is a leader and irreplaceable member of Station 50 in Patterson, California.
Division Chief of West Stanislaus Fire Protection District Station 50, Jonathan Schali, stated that Borba received the firefighter of the year award because of his hard work and dedication to the department and his teammates.
“He leads by example and has taken it upon himself to mentor the new members as they become firefighters,” Schali said. “Since we are a volunteer fire department, we try and use the skills our members bring from their careers to better our department. Dan Borba has been a huge asset to our department and the skills he brings from his years of service with DLA are invaluable.”
Borba started volunteering as a fire fighter in 2018. Two years later, he was promoted to engineer and in May 2023, Borba was promoted to fire captain.
Schali also noted that a large percentage of the volunteer force are young and looking for experience to help them enter a career in the fire service in the future.
“However, Dan came to us with a different thought and that was to be a volunteer for our department to help and serve his community,” Schali said. “These types of people are rare, especially with a volunteer department, so we are extremely grateful for all the time, skills, and dedication he brings to our department. We are proud to call Dan a Captain for West Stanislaus Fire.”
Borba stated that he typically works roughly 36 hours per week at the fire station, on top of the 40 hours he works at DDJC. When asked what his favorite part of being a fire fighter is, he talked about being able to help his community and others during their most critical moments.
“I love my job with DLA and take pride in what we do for the Warfighter in support of our nation,” Borba said. “The fire department allows me the opportunity to stay physically active and give back to my local community while helping others. Both are very rewarding.”