Keynote Speaker - Captain Russ "Boss" Bartlett, U.S Navy Retired (Blue Angel Pilot)
Russ “Boss” Bartlett has led an “interesting” life. He’s been flying, building, or selling airplanes his whole adult life. He was a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet pilot. He was Commanding Officer and Flight Leader of the legendary Blue Angels. Upon retirement from the Navy, he took the things he learned flying and leading, especially at the Blue Angels, to the Aerospace and Defense industry. He was president of Beechcraft Defense Company, CEO of Textron Airborne Solutions, and COO at Kaman Aerospace Corporation. In those roles, he tested, tweaked, and validated his best practices and is currently out on the speakers’ circuit to share them with the American people.
But his journey sure didn’t start that way! As an adventurous 11 year old growing up on Nantucket Island, he fell in love with his Honda Trail 70 dirt bike and has had multiple motorcycles in his life ever since. His pre-teen summers were spent on the water, unsupervised, in a 13 foot Boston Whaler speedboat (Mom, what were you thinking???). After high school he landed at the United States Naval Academy, one of the best things that ever happened to him. Despite the great college start, he called his parents at the end of his sophomore year to tell them he was quitting the Naval Academy to become a professional motocross rider. Somehow Mom and Dad talked him off the ledge on the dirt bike thing. Russ decided that becoming a Naval Aviator was the
closest thing he could find to riding motocross. And the rest is history.
Captain Russ “Beef” Bartlett, U.S. Navy (retired), became a combat-seasoned F/A-18 Hornet pilot and was a squadron commander twice: the first time as the Commanding Officer of a Navy Strike Fighter squadron, forward-deployed to the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk in Japan; and the second time as Commanding Officer and Flight Leader of the Blue Angels. He accumulated 4400 flight hours (3200 or so in the Hornet) and made 841 aircraft carrier arrested landings, 333 of them at night. Post-Navy, he’s been in leadership roles in corporate America ever since. He lives his life by his simple motto: “Drive fast. Take chances.”
National Veterans Award Recipients, 1954 - Present
A perpetual National Veterans Award was created in Birmingham for America’s first official National Veterans Day observance November 11, 1954 as authorized by Congress. Its purpose is to honor an outstanding veteran in the United States each year who has made the greatest contribution to further the patriotic interests of veterans and veteran organizations throughout the country. Every year, the award is presented at the National Veterans Award Dinner in Birmingham.
1954 - Congressman Edward H. Rees
1955 - Harvey V. Higley, National Administration of Veterans Affairs
1956 - General Mark Clark, President of the Citadel
1957 - General Lucius D. Clay, Chairman of the Board, Continental Can Co.
1958 - Governor Ernest Vandiver - Georgia, Governor E.F. Hollings - South Carolina, and Governor John Patterson - Alabama.
1959 - General Alfred M. Gruenther, President of the American Red Cross
1960 - Sumner G. Whittier, Chief of the Veterans Administration
1961 - General James A. Van Fleet
1962 - John S. Gleason, National Administrator of Veterans Affairs
1963 - General Mathew B. Ridgeway
1964 - General J. Lawton Collins
1965 - General David Sarnoff, Chairman of the Board, RCA
1966 - General Paul D. Adams, Strike Commander
1967 - Donald M. Kendall, CEO, Pepsi-Cola Company
1968 - General Lauris Norstad, NATO Commander
1969 - Colonel Roscoe Turner
1970 - General Omar N. Bradley, General of the Army
1971 - Lieutenant General James Doolittle
1972 - Brigadier General James Stewart
1973 - Charles A. Lindberg
1974 - Admiral Thomas H. Moorer, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
1975 - General Lewis B. Hershey, Director Selective Service System
1976 - Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong
1977 - General William C Westmoreland, Chief of Staff, U.S. Army
1978 - Brigadier General Paul W. Tibbits, Jr.
1979 - Admiral Arleigh A. Burke, Chief of Naval Operations
1980 - General Louis Wilson, Commandant, U.S. Marine Corps
1981 - Captain Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
1982 - Admiral Hyman G. Rickover
1983 - Brigadier General Joseph J. Foss
1984 - Congressman G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery
1985 - General Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
1986 - Senator Barry M. Goldwater
1987 - Vernon A. Walters, Ambassador to the United Nations
1988 - Senator Sam Nunn
1989 - Senator Howell Heflin
1990 - General William J. Livsey, Commander, Eighth Army
1991 - Senator Daniel Inouye
1992 - General Charles Horner, Commander, U.S. Space Command
1993 - Major General Mary E. Clarke, Rear Admiral Fran McKee
1994 - Lieutenant General John J. Yeosock
1995 - COL William R. Lawley, Jr., Rear Admiral Eugene B. Fluckey, MSG Henry E. Erwin, CPT Maurice Britt, CPT Jack Lucas
1996 - General Raymond G. Davis
1997 - Colonel Ola Lee Mize
1998 - General George A. Joulwan
1999 - General Dennis J. Reimer
2000 - General Carl E. Mundy, Jr.
2001 - Major General J. Gary Cooper
2002 - Lieutenant General Robert F. Foley
2003 - Major Bert Bank
2004 - Major General Donald R. Gardner
2005 - Colonel Leo K. Thorsness
2006 - Lieutenant General Hal Moore
2007 - Colonel H.C. "Barney" Barnum, Jr.
2008 - Lieutenant General Ron Christmas
2009 - Admiral Frank B. Kelso
2010 - General Charles C. Krulak
2011 - Colonel William M. Voigt
2012 - Colonel George "Bud" Day
2013 - Tuskegee Airmen
2014 - Senator Robert "Bob" Dole
2015 - Ronald E. Rosser, Sergeant First Class
2016 - Command Sergeant Major, Bennie G. Adkins
2017 - Navajo Code Talkers
2018 - Captain Gary Michael Rose
2019 - Jeff Sessions
2020 - WWII Veterans
2021 - Military Covid Responders
2022 - Medal of Honor Recipients
2023 - James Popwell, Veteran Marine and Founder of Flags for Vets, Inc.
2024 - Admiral Robert J. Natter
Raymond Weeks National Veterans Award Trophy