Sanford honored for support of Guard member

Friday, March 28, 2008

Carl Lambert, left, presents ESGR's Above and Beyond Award and the Patriotic Employer Award to Sanford Brands supervisors Brenda Allen and Melissa Barker. Sgt. Anthony Brandon submitted his supervisors for the awards.
(Submitted photo)

Sanford Brands' distribution center on Railroad Avenue has been honored by Employee Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) for its support of employees while they are away from their full-time jobs in the service of their country.

Melissa Barker supervises Sanford's outbound distribution division. On March 24, she was presented with an award for her compassion and support as an employer of a Tennessee Army National Guardsman.

Anthony Brandon, an employee of the company and an Army National Guard sergeant, was mobililized and deployed in support Operation Iraqi Freedom more than a year ago. While serving in Iraq, he was injured and subsequently returned to the states and his job with Sanford. Since his return he's been welcomed by his employer and supported when he leaves for weekend military duty.

Brandon nominated Barker for a patriotic award. The citation reads, "Melissa Barker is a very understanding lady and she supports me any way possible when it comes to my military duty and is very supportive when it comes to my medical appointments at the VA and for the military. She does what she can to make my job easier because of my injuries. She really understands the importance of my call of duty on drill weekends and to my country. All in all, she is a great person. My company is very supportive of the Guard and Reserve, outwardly recognizing me and they hire a fill-in when I am away on official duty."

Carl Lambert, Middle Tennessee chairman for Employer Support for Guard and the Reserve, presented Baker with the ESGR Patriotic Employer Award for her support of Brandon. In addition, Lambert presented Brenda Allen, Sanford's day-shift supervisor, with the ESGR's "Above and Beyond" Award. This honor is bestowed upon those employers "who exemplify the nation's resolve and commitment to the men and women who serve as citizen soldiers in the fight of the Global War of Terrorism." Allen is a former recipient of the Patriotic Employer Award.

Sanford operates a state-of-the-art distribution center for some of the world's leading pens, pencils and writing utensils, including its popular Sharpie markers. At any one time there are an average of 170,000 writing instruments warehoused for delivery to locations throughout the world.

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This is great news. Our soliders need our support. Thank you Sandord for your kindness.

-- Posted by justawalkn on Fri, Mar 28, 2008, at 10:10 AM

It is a nice change to see a local factory do something nice for an american. Tysons should pay attention.

-- Posted by breezy on Sun, Mar 30, 2008, at 1:39 PM

the story is great,but they need to think about the employees they have now,because if your not hispanic u 4 not welcome 2 work there.

-- Posted by Flyncarpet on Sun, Mar 30, 2008, at 11:25 PM