Congratulations to thE
2024 Civilian Award Winners!

Due to their unique mission, the DLA Troop Support Flag Room is a highly visible and irreplaceable facet of not only DLA history, but the Nation's history. The resiliency and diversity of the Flag Room has been a symbol of pride within DLA Troop Support and continually contributes to the development of our greater workforce through direct engagement within DLA, the industrial base, and the private sector. Specifically, in promotion of AANHPI communities and their invaluable contributions to the American Story.

Mr. Adam P. Walstrum works closely with the DLA PACE program where new and transitional DLA employees are provided a presentation by the Flag Room in support of the ENGAGE program which inspires our new workforce by demonstrating the core values of DLA and the potential of individuals through the flag-making mission. This mission is annually noted at the Troop Support Academy. He engages with the industry base through an annual Clothing & Textiles conference, JAPBI, to showcase the traditional heritage embroidery that is almost nonexistent in the western commercial industries.

Annually on Flag Day, June 14th, Mr. Walstrum and the team participates in the Philadelphia naturalization ceremonies and provides public demonstrations of their craft at the Betsy Ross House museum in Philadelphia, sharing their story with new citizens of the US. Within the team, recruiting, promoting, and maintaining equity have been cultivated by holding fundamental values of equity an opportunity above all else. Though hiring actions are available to all agencies, it is most common that the skills require are discovered within the private sector and may come for many new and undiscovered sectors.

In order to succeed Mr. Walstrum recognizes that all 13 members of the team come from very different walks of life but share a purpose and vision. Adam ensures that cultural diversity and a broad range of acquired skills by his employees are highlighted during tours and media events. Many of his employees have diverse cultural backgrounds and come from countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines and have studied embroidery in many Asian/Pacific countries to include Vietnam, Philippines, as well as cities such as Hong Kong. These embroidery styles are drastically different than those of styles taught in other countries such as the US and England.

Mr. Walstrum has ensured that this embroidery style that was taught in the Asian/Pacific countries continues to be taught to all hand embroiderers and is used in the production of all Presidential and Vice-Presidential flags. As such, he highlights this embroidery style during tours and various other media engagements.

Mr. Dean Nakasone Mr. Nakasone serves as a Supervising Engineer leading a team that manages various programs that build, maintain, repair, acquire, and retire facilities for the DLA activities throughout the U.S. Indo-Pacific. He advocates and ensures the professional development and administrative management for his team. Mr. Nakasone has been with the DLA for 13 years and has a career spanning over three decades with the Federal Government.

Prior to joining DLA, he served in the following positions with primary responsibilities as Mechanical Engineer at Hickam Air Force Base, Energy Manager at Pacific Air Forces, General Engineer at Johnston Atoll Program Office, Mechanical Engineer and Environmental Engineer at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Honolulu Engineer District, and a Nuclear Engineer at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard.

Mr. Nakasone has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Hawaii. He is a registered Professional Engineer (PE) in the mechanical specialty with the State of Hawaii and is a Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design Accredited Professional (LEED AP) with the Green Building Certification Institute.

Justina Fugh is the Director of the Ethics Office for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Since 2006, she has also served as the Alternate Designated Agency Ethics Official, a position that is classified as a Senior Leader (SL, the equivalent of the Senior Executive Service (SES). Justina is the first Asian American woman at EPA to hold the SL designation, and the first woman and person of color to hold this position since its inception. Upon graduation from George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC, Justina joined EPA and has been a stalwart and dedicated employee and manager for more than thirty-six years. She is also a graduate of Vassar College with a degree in art history.

Justina began her distinguished career at EPA as a staff attorney enforcing the Clean Air Act. Since then, she has worked an attorney in various offices throughout the Agency, including the Office of the Administrator, the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance and the Office of General Counsel. She has been an EPA supervisor for over twenty-five years. In 2021, EPA presented her with a national honor award for First Line Supervisor Excellence.

As the EPA’s Alternate Designated Agency Ethics Official, Justina is the most senior career employee who works solely on ethics issues. Her areas of expertise include all aspects of the federal ethics laws and regulations, the Hatch Act and professional responsibility for lawyers. She consistently provides expert, accurate and timely advice to employees at all levels, notably EPA’s most senior career and political leaders.

Navigating EPA’s decentralized ethics program, Justina and her staff rely on more than 120 deputy ethics officials throughout the agency to implement the confidential financial disclosure system for 9000 filers. Her team directly manages the public financial disclosure system for 600 filers and is responsible for providing annual ethics training to all filers. Under her leadership, Justina ensures that EPA’s financial disclosure reporting metrics are among the best among federal agencies. Justina also provides the necessary guidance and direction so that the Agency’s ethics program is carried out effectively for all of EPA’s 15,000 employees across its ten headquarters offices, regions and four research centers. Notably, she ensures that the EPA Ethics Office delivers ethics training that is enjoyed – not merely endured – by more than 10,000 filers each year.

Among her colleagues at EPA and her peers at other federal agencies, Justina is recognized as a no-nonsense, results-oriented expert and tour-de-force. She is a leader in the federal ethics community and is held in high esteem by her EPA colleagues, not an easy feat given her position. It is a testament to her skill as an attorney, colleague, and individual that she has developed and maintains enduring relationships with all levels of EPA employees. Her sense of humor may be factor: her official EPA bio mentions that she and her husband, also a Vassar graduate, have two sons, which means that she “avoids housework and gardening, instead spending much of her creative energy trying to outsmart the men in her life.”