The Army Public Affairs Association is proud to announce Army Staff Sgt. Stephen L. Dornbos is the 2022 recipient of the Master Sgt. Marcia J. Triggs Award for Excellence. Dornbos serves as the Noncommissioned Officer-in-Charge of the 50th Public Affairs Detachment, Fort Stewart, Georgia.
The MSG Marcia J. Triggs Award for Excellence is an annual recognition for an Army noncommissioned officer in grades E-6 through E-8 who has demonstrated outstanding and sustained
excellence in leadership.
“We are honored to recognize Staff Sgt. Dornbos this year,“ Army Public Affairs Association President John Harlow said. “Staff Sgt. Dornbos is our first recipient at the staff sergeant level and his service and accomplishments truly show the excellence for which he receives this award.”
The Army Public Affairs Association would again like to take this opportunity to thank Bell for their sponsorship of the Master Sgt. Marcia J. Triggs Award for Excellence.
As outlined by Dornbos’ award submission, his service and accomplishments demonstrate his exceptional dedication to excellence. Dornbos organized and led the effort in renaming an American Forces Network (AFN) building from AFN Bavaria to the Master Sgt. Marcia J. Triggs Broadcast Center. Over the course of nine months, Dornbos created the petition packet, coordinated with U.S. Army Garrison (USAG) Bavaria leaders that included Garrison Commander Col. Christopher Danbeck, Director of Public Affairs Donald Wrenn, and the Directorate of Public Works team. He developed the event’s structure and provided guidance on how the ceremony should be conducted. He created an eight-page program containing event information, a photo collage, and biographies for Master Sgt. Triggs and guest speaker Sgt. Maj (Retired) Richard Puckett, Chief, Communication Synchronization Division, U.S. Army Europe and Africa Public Affairs. He produced a 16-minute video that highlighted family members, friends, and colleagues sharing thoughts and memories in tribute to Master Sgt. Triggs. On May 6, 2022, AFN Bavaria streamed the dedication ceremony live on its Facebook page, which accumulated 1.9 thousand views, 377 engagements and 40 shares to include U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria and the Army Public Affairs Association. AFN Bavaria is the first U.S. military broadcast station in the world to bear the name of any Army public affairs professional.
Dornbos demonstrated seasoned leadership skills above and beyond the norm. Because of this, he was chosen by his leadership at AFN Europe to serve one level above his enlisted grade for six months as the AFN Bavaria station manager, which reaches a military community of more than 67,000 people
through TV and radio broadcasts that use seven transmitter sites across 4,000 square miles. He used his experience as the AFN Yongsan station manager, a position he held as a sergeant, to restructure AFN Bavaria’s workflow, improve training and production schedules, clearly define roles, duties and expectations, and to develop enlisted leaders to be more proactive and autonomous when managing their sections while still maintaining cooperation with other sections; his efforts resulted in faster product turnaround, improved morale and better team cohesion. He developed four original radio programs as a teaching tool for Soldiers to learn how to create engaging content for command information while emulating professional, civilian radio content in the United States. His expertise and guidance resulted in consistent, positive feedback from leadership at AFN Europe, and USAG Bavaria and its community, about the entertainment quality of the station’s radio shows. Command Sgt. Maj. Matthew Howard rated Dornbos in the top 25% of all staff sergeants he’s rated in his 27-year career.
Dornbos’ technical expertise has made an indelible contribution today and has created a legacy of enduring positive impacts for the future. Dornbos set a higher degree of quality and expectations for American Network Forces television spot production with animated commercials providing command information; one requested by then-Lt. Gen. Christopher Cavoli, Commanding General, U.S. Army Europe; and two requested by Col. Mark DeMichiei, Deputy Commander of the Medical Department Activity Bavaria. As a result of his unique production skills and creativity with these products, his leaders at AFN Europe asked him to create computer-based training for public affairs professionals of all levels, which is now available online through Defense Acquisition University (DAU). He used his experience as an instructor for advanced video training at the Defense Information School to create a class for “TV Spots Production.” He also created a 15-part course in “Animation Techniques” that teaches advanced video editing techniques, how to create and prepare hand-drawn and digital artwork, and to employ more complex methods of motion graphics. His courses build upon core techniques that can help shape the future of production for AFN television.
“Staff Sgt. Dornbos stands among our best Public Affairs NCOs and his record of service and contribution is truly outstanding. On behalf of our membership, the members of the association’s Board of Directors and I look forward to honoring Staff Sgt. Dornbos, along with 2020 recipient Master Sgt. Heather Denby and 2021 recipient Master Sgt. Chuck Burden, with great fanfare and well-deserved accolades when we can finally gather again in person in the New Year,” Harlow added. “Until then, we invite our career field and community to reach out and join us in congratulating this year’s finest of NCOs, Staff Sgt. Stephen L. Dornbos."