Joshua Wouden Named Operation Homefront’s First Space Force Military Child of the Year®
Here at Operation Homefront, the New Year doesn’t just bring with it the anticipation of all the ways we will serve our military families but also the excitement of Military Child of the Year award season! And it begins in earnest today with the announcing of our semifinalists for the 2017 Military Child of the Year® Award and the semifinalists for the second annual Military Child of the Year Award for Innovation.
This year’s semifinalists range in age from 8-18 and represent 37 states and Puerto Rico, with one nominee from overseas.
Without further ado, here are our semifinalists by branch of service:
AIR FORCE
Anthony Beasley, 18, Hurlburt Field, FL.
Jamal Braxton, 18, Hill AFB, UT.
Katherine Dever, 17, Kathleen, GA.
Marianna Galvin, 17, Henderson, NV.
Linda Goodson, 17, Triangle, VA.
Gavin Hetzler, 17, Edmond, OK.
Sharlee Krkosa, 17, Schertz, TX.
Trevette Kuester, 17, Huntington, MD.
Kylee McClure, 18, Monroe, UT.
Erin McLeod, 17, Anchorage, AK.
Jordyn McNeal, 10, Birmingham, AL.
Benjamin Rawald, 14, Del Rio, TX.
Edward Salvador, 16, Niceville, FL.
Caroline Stanton, 11, Las Vegas, NV.
Erica Thompson, 18, Colorado Springs, CO.
ARMY
Darrius Anderson, 17, Mansfield, TX.
Alec Argueta, 17, El Paso, TX.
Andrea Gamble, 17, Kaiserlauten, GER
Hayley Hamblin, 18, Florissant, CO.
Henderson Heussner, 18, Fort Myers, FL.
Hunter Hotaling, 15, Lansing, KS.
Timothy Hunt, 17, Burke, VA.
Mackenzie Miller, 17, Peachtree City, GA.
Elissa Nott, 17, Onalaska, WI.
Jediah Persaud, 16, Appling, GA.
Grace Pleinis, 9, Tampa, FL.
Thomas Rizza, 11, Bradenton, FL.
Cohen Russell, 10, Fort Meade, MD.
Madison Shick, 15, Tampa, FL.
Madeline Turpin, 17, Wahiawa, HI.
COAST GUARD
Mary Kate Cooper, 17, Fairfax, VA.
Kaili Cutler, 8, Daphne, AL.
Tyler Evans, 14, Maple Valley, WA.
Janelle Gehrke, 15, Saint Joseph, MI.
William Kuebler, 12, League City, TX.
Charlie McGuire, 12, Trenton, NJ.
Kylie McGuire, 15, Trenton, NJ.
Gabriel Niles, 14, Bennington, VT.
Jessie Porter, 17, Bayamon, PR.
Ashlynn Ruleman, 16, Waterford, CT
Alyssa Santos, 17, Tarpon Springs, FL.
Joseph Schmid, 8, Marshfield, MA.
Kira Walters, 14, Yorktown, VA.
Cody Watson, 16, Tuttle, OK.
Rachel Winburn, 17, Ketchikan, AK.
MARINE CORPS
Viktoria Alston, 17, Havelock, NC.
Jackson Beatty, 17, Camp Lejeune, NC.
Carson Butler, 18, Virginia Beach, VA.
Kindrah Carney, 16, Pearl City, HI.
Alejandro Cook-Hernandez, 17, Havelock, NC.
Da’Rod Crutchfield, 18, Camp Lejeune, NC.
Jocelyn Figueora-Urquidi, 13, Beaufort, SC.
Joshua Frawley, 13, Jacksonville, NC.
McKenzie Galloway, 17, Stafford, VA.
Brooke Gruber, 17, Jacksonville, NC.
Sierra LeFlore, 17, San Marcos, CA.
Jennifer Narvaez, 16, Hubert, NC.
Cody Phillips, 17, Quantico, VA.
Thomas Russ, 17, Stafford, VA.
Neorah Wells, 9, Charlotte, NC.
NAVY
Alexis Bryant, 17, Virginia Beach, VA.
Olivia Burch, 18, Grand Forks, ND.
Chace Cleckley, 17, Fallon, NV.
Caleb Harding, 16, Camp Lejeune, NC.
Sierra K., 17, Middletown, RI.
Britton Laing, 18, Silverdale, WA.
Akaiah Lovell, 15, Port Orchard, WA.
Alexander McGrath, 17, Severna Park, MD.
Aiden OLeary, 17, Fredricksburg, VA.
Evan Pittman, 18, Phoenix, AZ.
Isabelle Richards, 12, Jamul, CA.
Kathryn Schorr, 17, Darien, CT.
Alexander Sucato, 16, Belle Chasse, LA.
Ethan Vicario, 17, Virginia Beach, VA.
Reagan Warrick, 12, El Cajon, CA.
NATIONAL GUARD
Connor Ascherl, 18, Granville, IA.
Amelia Bailey, 16, Saint Augustine, FL.
Trevor Bartunek, 17, Rapid City, SD.
Sheryl Evans, 17, Callahan, FL.
Molly Frey, 16, Pickerington, OH.
John Kargel, 15, Isle, MN.
Zaniya Lewis, 18, Edgewater Park, NJ.
Sydney Long, 17, Lincoln, NE.
Isabelle Miller, 16, Spokane, WA.
Lily Moser, 15, Portland, OR.
Eleanor Rager, 17, Douglasville, GA.
Kara Smith, 17, Munford, TN.
Alexander Steinmetz, 16, Cottage Grove, MN.
Joshua Traxel, 16, Rolla, MO.
Alysha Worden, 17, Martinez, GA.
Semifinalists for 2017 Operation Homefront Military Child of the Year® Award for Innovation Presented by Booz Allen Hamilton
BreAsia Austin, 17, Dallas, TX, National Guard
Kamille Banks, 17, Lodi, NJ, Coast Guard
Sophie Bernstein, 16, St. Louis, MO, Navy
Elizabeth Brouse, 17, Merchantville, NJ, Army
Marianne Dunaway, 17, Madison, AL, Army
Gabriel Feinn, 16, Louisville, KY, Navy
Kianna Flowers, 17, Gambrills, MD, Air Force
Noah Freye, 17, Chesapeake, VA, Navy
Kennedy Knight, 17, Charlotte, NC, National Guard
Maura Knutsen, 17, Centerville, UT, Army
Jason Lee, 17, Pacheco, CA, Army
Jennifer Molton, 16, Lucas, OH, National Guard
Lily Moser, 15, Portland, OR, Army
Krystalin Neary, 17, St. Peter, MN, National Guard
Caitlyn Schoon, 17, Belle Plaine, MN, Army
Samantha Shaffer, 18, Greenwood, IN, Army
Madison Shick, 15, Tampa, FL, Army
Mikaela Smith, 17, Las Vegas, NV, Air Force
Trinity Torgerson, 17, Colorado Springs, CO, National Guard
Cierra Williams-Carter, 17, Virginia Beach, VA, Navy
So now that we have our semifinalists, what’s next?
Each semifinalist for the military branch awards will be interviewed by a team selected by Operation Homefront staff. Award recipients will be chosen by a panel of judges, to include senior retired service members, senior spouses, members of Operation Homefront’s board of directors, and other leaders in the military support community. Booz Allen Hamilton will judge competitors for the Military Child of the Year® Award for Innovation.
The top 5 finalists from each branch will be announced in February. Winners will be announced in March and then on to the big gala in Washington, D.C. on April 06, 2017.
Congratulations to all of our Military Child of the Year semi-finalists! Great job!
