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News | June 28, 2022

Employee Reflections: Kevin Sparks

DLA Disposition Services Red River Army Depot

DLA Disposition Services' Environmental Specialist Kevin Sparks at his desk at the Red River Army Depot, Texarkana, TX.
Sparks
DLA Disposition Services' Environmental Specialist Kevin Sparks at his desk at the Red River Army Depot, Texarkana, TX.
Photo By: Staff
VIRIN: 220608-D-AA987-1777
Can you tell us about yourself?
I am married, to my wife, Beverly, we have three children, Sarah, Jadyn and K.C..  Sarah is the mother of my two wonderful grandsons, Jadyn is currently a senior in college and K.C. is a senior in high school.  We enjoy spending family time together.  I enjoy the outdoors, hiking, fishing and just enjoying nature.

Describe your job in a sentence or two. What do you do specifically? Currently my position is more of a support role to my team.  As their supervisor, I feel it is my job to eliminate obstacles for them so they can successfully meet their requirements.

How long have you worked for the federal government including military service? 24 years

How long have you worked for DLA Disposition Services? 20 years

What is your favorite memory with DLA Disposition Services? Building professional relationships with my co-workers past and present.  Working with individuals from other areas and ways of life.

What aspect(s) of your current job gives you the most personal satisfaction and why? Seeing my employees growing in their position and celebrating their successes.

What is the best piece of advice someone has given you? “You can do anything that YOU want to do, it’s not always easy but it is always worth it!”

If you could speak directly to the warfighters you support, what would you tell them? Fortunately, I have had the opportunity to work side by side with the warfighters in war zones as a deployed civilian with Disposition Services. I always expressed to them that we are here to support them and to help them through the process. We need to make their jobs easier, not more complicated.

What was your first job? I started out with Disposition Services as a WG-06, Material Examiner and Identifier, I worked up through the ranks to my current position as a GS-12, Supervisory Environmental Specialist, anything is possible.

What is your best memory of working here?  The most rewarding moments have been my deployments, although there were sacrifices made (being away from my family) it was very rewarding to be able to support the warfighter during the difficult times.

 What are some of your passions outside of work? I have two wonderful grandsons, Rowan and River, that I love to spend time with outside of work.  We enjoy hiking creeks and rivers and exploring new things. Watching their faces light up with enthusiasm over the simple things in nature is my greatest joy.