ESGR recognizes as Spaeth as a ‘Patriotic Employer’

From left, ESGR members Joshlyn Blas; Rose Igitol, employer outreach representative for the CNMI; Dr. Rita A. Sablan, CNMI Committee area chair; BECQ environmental specialist and Army Reservist Sgt. Aloysius Atalig, Cdr. Travis Spaeth, a U.S. Public Health Officer and Safe Drinking Water manager of BECQ; Eli Cabrera, administrator of BECQ; Joann Aquino, ombudsman representative for the CNMI; Zabrina Cruz, Division of Environmental Quality director; and Glenn Arriola, environmental specialist for BECQ. Spaeth was presented the Patriotic Employer award yesterday by ESGR for his support of employee participation in America’s National Guard and Reserves Force. (LEIGH GASES)

The Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Committee for Guam and the CNMI recognized Cdr. Travis Spaeth of the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality yesterday as a Patriotic Employer.

Spaeth, a U.S. Public Health Officer and Safe Drinking Water manager at BECQ, was presented with the award in a ceremony at the BECQ conference room, after being nominated by BECQ environmental specialist and Army Reservist Sgt. Aloysius Atalig.

The award is presented to employers for contributing to national security and supporting employee participation in America’s National Guard and Reserves Force.

Present at yesterday’s event were Joann Aquino, ombudsman representative for the CNMI; Dr. Rita A. Sablan, CNMI Committee area chair; Rose Igitol, employer outreach representative for the CNMI; ESGR member Joshlyn Blas; Eli Cabrera, administrator of BECQ; Glenn Arriola, environmental specialist for BECQ; and Zabrina Cruz, Division of Environmental Quality director.

Prior to the awarding, Sablan thanked everyone for “taking time to give us the opportunity to present a very special recognition to one of your supervisors. The ESGR are a Department of Defense volunteer organization and so we advocate for everybody, not just the service member, but the employer as well. So, there are recognition awards that are given out to supervisors, whenever their service members submit a nomination, and we were able to receive a nomination from Loy. We wanted to do a presentation on behalf of the Guam-CNMI state ESGR Committee.”

Loy, a 20-year reservist, said that he nominated his supervisor because “Cdr. Spaeth has been patriotic for our country. Not only does he work in the local government, he is also an officer in the U.S. Public Health as an outstanding engineer.”

“Cdr. Spaeth has not given me hardship when I get called. Being with the U.S. Uniformed Services himself, he understands my situation when I get called at short notices. He understands that when I am on military leave, it will hurt our office, but he believes in the calling of patriots,” he added.

BECQ environmental specialist and Army Reservist Sgt. Aloysius Atalig, left, nominated his supervisor, Cdr. Travis Spaeth, a U.S. Public Health Officer and Safe Drinking Water manager of BECQ, for The Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Committee for Guam and the CNMI “Patriot Employer” award. (LEIGH GASES)

Spaeth said, “I just feel very honored. Loy has been deployed a lot but because I’m in uniform myself, I totally understand that it’s part of your duties to do both at times.”

Spaeth has worked in BECQ since 2019 after working at the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.

This year, the ESGR celebrates 25 years of service in the CNMI and, as an agency of the Department of Defense, has been helping U.S. servicemen for 50 years.