Email from January 16th, 2026 Click here to view the Alert on the MDAA website Follow and Support MDAA   MDAA Alert: 2025 Missile Defender of the Year From left: RADM (Ret) Mark Montgomery, Brig Gen Christopher Fernengel, MSgt William Sullivan, Col Michael McCarthy, Sgt Ryan Wass, VADM Brad Skillman, LT Grace Lawrence, LTG Sean Gainey, LT Jake Licht, Mr. Riki Ellison, and Mr. John Rood at the 2025 U.S. Missile Defender of the Year Awards. Alexandria, Virginia. January 16, 2026. “The Missile Defender of the Year is the backbone of World Championship culture. This is culture building at its best. It takes all of us to build that culture to recognize the best of the best within the team. This is a joint team here. We are very diverse. We have personalities. We've recognized 1,400 guys catching the ball—and gals. Over 28 countries setting culture, winning culture by recognition of that greatness by greatness. And all of us are part of it. We work for the love of the game, all of you. You're doing this for the love of the game, and that's the most important driver: to love what you do to become invincible. Together to create that trust, we bonded that trust tonight that is invincible when you become invincible. It doesn't matter, the resilience doesn't matter, you Win! It is powerful to see these real-world examples of that. And we right now, of all the 16 years of the Missile Defender of the Year, of all of the 46 years since 1980, have for the first time, we have brought it together to create the ultimate missile defense the world's ever, ever seen. It's going to be implemented. It's right here, but it's going to take all of you to do it. And it's going to take all of you to contribute, for the love of the game. It's impressive that we've got to a stage in our lifetimes that the world requires your skillset, your leadership, and your mission to make this world safe. It's fundamental, and it's exciting to see this unfold. Winners Associate with Winners to Win!” –Riki Ellison at the U.S. Missile Defender of the Year award ceremony, Alexandria Virigina, January 16, 2026. This past Friday, MDAA held our 16th annual U.S. Missile Defender of the Year awards ceremony to honor and award six distinguished servicemembers from across the U.S. Armed Forces: Marine Sergeant Ryan Wass, Army Lieutenant Jake Licht, Navy Lieutenant Grace Lawrence, Army National Guard Captain Gregory May, Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Connie Omolayo, and Space Force Master Sergeant William Sullivan. This year, the U.S. Marine Corps participated in this prestigious joint recognition for the very first time. The 2025 Missile Defender of the Year awardees began the day at Mt Vernon, laying a wreath on the tomb of the United States first Commander-in-Chief and President, George Washington. Our Nation’s leader in creating, leading, and implementing World Championship Culture for the Defense of the United States of America. The 2025 Missile Defender of the Year awardees ended the day at Alexandria in a World Championship Culture with their families and their Command and with the Leaders of our Missile Defense for the United States of America. We were honored to have in attendance General Michael Guetlein, Director of the Golden Dome for America; Lieutenant General Sean Gainey, SMDC Commander and Joint Task Force-Gold Commander; Lieutenant General Heath Collins, Director of the Missile Defense Agency; Vice Admiral Brad Skillman, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations, Integration of Capabilities and Resources; Lieutenant General Joseph Jarrard, Deputy Commander, USNORTHCOM and America's newest 3-star general; Major General Duke Pirak, Deputy Director of the Air National Guard; Major General Brian Gibson , Director of Strategy, Plans and Policy at USSPACECOM; Major General Richard Wholey, Commander, 263rd Army Air and Missile Defense Command; Brigadier General Christopher Fernengel, Director of Plans and Programs in the Office of the Chief Strategy and Resource Officer, U.S. Space Force; and Brigadier General Jason Knight, Special Assistant for Space Operations to the Commander of the Air National Guard Readiness Center. Among the others in the audience were several parents of awardees, including U.S. Army awardee Lieutenant Jake Licht’s father: a MACV-SOG veteran, Navy pilot, 22-month Vietnam POW, and inspirational hero who honored us all with his attendance. We are honored to present the 2025 U.S. Missile Defenders of the Year: Master Sergeant William Sullivan UNITED STATES SPACE FORCE Flight Chief at 3d Space Warning Squadron, Buckley SFB, Colorado Presented by Brigadier General Christopher Fernengel Captain Gregory May UNITED STATES ARMY NATIONAL GUARD Presented by Lieutenant General Joseph Jarrard Sergeant Ryan Wass UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS Sensor Platoon Maintenance Chief for Air Control Battery, 3d Littoral Anti-Air Battalion, 3d Marine Littoral Regiment Presented by Colonel Michael McCarthy Lieutenant Colonel Connie Omolayo UNITED STATES AIR FORCE Lead IAMD Planner for Ninth Air Force (AFCENT) Presented by Major General Duke Pirak Lieutenant Grace Lawrence UNITED STATES NAVY Fire Control Officer, USS ARLEIGH BURKE (DDG 51) Presented by Vice Admiral Brad Skillman Lieutenant Jake Licht UNITED STATES ARMY Battery Commander of Tactics, Innovation, and Experimentation (TIE) Battery, 10th AAMDC, Ansbach, Germany Presented by Lieutenant General Sean Gainey United States Army National Guard SAGE Award Awardee: Captain Gregory May Presented by Lieutenant General Sean Gainey Sage Award for individual Air Defense excellence in the Army National Guard! Sage Award winners represent the very best in our formations, individuals whose consistent performance, innovation and dedication resulted in significant contributions to the ADA’s warfighting capabilities and readiness. The Sage Award is named for Maj. Gen. Charles G. Sage, who during World War II commanded the 200th Coast Artillery Regiment (Anti-Aircraft). He was awarded the Army Distinguished Service Medal for the defense of Clark Field on December 7th 1941, and later covered critical points on routes of withdrawal to the Bataan Peninsula. This award recognizes the Army National Guard (ARNG) individual ADA Officer, Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) or Soldier whose achievements are judged superior to their peers based on the criterion of leadership, tactical proficiency, selfless service, and commitment to excellence. The recipient’s contributions significantly enhanced ADA’s warfighting capabilities and readiness. United States Army SHIPTON Award Awardee: Lieutenant Jake Licht Presented by Lieutenant General Sean Gainey Shipton Award winners represent the very best in our formations. They are individuals whose consistent performance, innovation, and dedication have significantly enhanced the ADA’s warfighting capabilities and readiness. The Shipton Award is named for Brig. Gen. James A. Shipton, the founding father of the Air Defense Artillery branch. The Shipton Award is presented annually to an individual ADA officer, noncommissioned officer (NCO) or enlisted soldier whose achievements are judged superior to their peers based on the criterion of leadership, tactical proficiency, selfless service, and commitment to excellence. The recipient’s contributions significantly enhanced ADA’s warfighting capabilities and readiness. The award has been presented annually since 2010. The first Defender of the Year awards ceremony was held on January 14, 2011, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the first operational Patriot missile intercept on January 18, 1991, during the first Gulf War. Since then, the event has been held annually every January in Alexandria, Virginia, and has become the flagship of MDAA’s efforts to embed and instill a winning World Championship culture into American missile defense. This year’s six awardees are truly the best of the best in U.S. missile defense, perfect representatives of that very World Championship culture. Winners Associate with Winners to Win! Fight on! Riki Ellison Chairman and Founder Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance   Click Here to Join MDAA _____________________________________________________________________ MDAA is a non-profit, non-partisan tax-exempt 501(c) (4) organization. Our mission is to make the world safer by advocating for the development and deployment of missile defense systems to defend the United States and its allies against missile threats. We are a membership-funded organization that does not advocate on behalf of any specific system, technology, architecture or entity. Founded in 2002, MDAA is the only organization in existence whose primary mission is to recruit, organize, and mobilize proponents to advocate for the critical need of missile defense. Visit our website www.missiledefenseadvocacy.org for more information.   Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance 515 King Street, Suite 330 Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone: (703) 299-0060 Email: [email protected]   Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance | 515 King Street Suite 330 | Alexandria, VA 22314 US Unsubscribe | Constant Contact Data Notice