U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Abram Pinnington

Currently, I am the Non-Commissioned Officer In Charge of the 3rd Brigade Public Affairs staff, 101st Airborne Division, at Fort Campbell, Ky. A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a degree in Biology, I decided to serve in the United States Army after my father passed away in Dec. 2001. Being that he served in Vietnam as an infantryman in the US Marines, I decided to go the same route as my father. When I was told by the Marine Corps they could not guarantee that I would be an infantryman, due to my high test scores, I decided to go to the Army where they could guarantee me, in-writing, a future in the infantry. However, while in basic training I was selected and given orders to report to where I had the honor and privilege of serving within the 3rd United Stated Infantry Regiment, The Old Guard, in Fort Myer, Va. While stationed there I had the distinct honor of participating in full-honor military funerals in Arlington National Cemetary. While at Fort Myer, I successfully completed a training program and was accepted into the Continental Color Guard where I had the honor of being a part in major events such as: President Bush's second inauguration, President Regan's funeral (California sequence), President Clinton's Presidential Library grand opening ceremony, World War II memorial dedication ceremony, President Ford's funeral, 2004 World Series (games 3&4), 2005 Super Bowl, 2004 MLB All-Star Game, 9 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series races, 3 Monday Night Football games, and my personal favorite; The Pope Benedict XVI visit with President Bush in 2007. In 2005, I was selected to become the 81st member of the Presidential Escort Team, known as the "Hawk Team." During my tenure in the Hawk Team, my duty description entailed escorting the President of the United States within the walls of the White House whenever a foreign figure of importance would arrive. I was personally engaged by and stood next to some of the world's most powerful men and women during my two-year duty inside the White House. Some of the most notable international figures I had the pleasure of escorting were: Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Chinese President Hu Jintao, Israeli Prime Minister BenjaminNetanyahu, Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan, Japanese Prime Minister  Junichiro Koizumi (escorted at the White House and Graceland, Tn), Queen Elizabeth II, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, President Jimmy Carter, President Bill Clinton, President George H. W. Bush, and primarily escorted President George W. Bush. In 2007, I was selected by the Department of the Army to serve as a recruiter in Fort Wayne, In. There, I served four years as a recruiter, recruiter team leader and assistant station commander. While assigned to the United States Army Recruiting Command I earned the prestigious Glen E. Morrel Award for Recruiting Excellence. In 2010, I decided to pursue my dreams of working in Major League Baseball. I changed my military occupation specialty to Public Affairs so I could work my way to have the best resume I could possibly have to help land a MLB public relations or community relations position some day. While currently serving as the PAO NCOIC at Fort Campbell, Ky, I am studying for a second undergraduate degree in Public Relations and plan to graduate from Syracuse University in 2014. I am blessed to have a wonderful and loving wife, Lindsay. Without her, I wouldn't be half the person I am today. It takes a strong woman to be a military spouse and she does it effortlessly. I am lucky to have such an amazing women next to me. When I have spare time in the Spring and Summer, I find myself watching baseball (GO CUBBIES!), camping, wine tasting, and enjoying the outdoors. During the fall and winter, it is a safe bet I can be found in a duck blind or in the brush hunting quail or pheasant with my Hungarian Vizsla, "Gus." I'm firm believer that hard work pays off. Dream big, work hard.... but enjoy life while you're at it.