Accepting applications for The Brittany Bria Gordon Excellence In Achievement Award

Deadline: Postmarked on or before Friday December 18, 2015

Purpose: This award, given in honor of fallen soldier Brittany Bria Gordon, and funded by the Cedric Gordon Family & Rouson Family, is presented to a student graduating from high school who has demonstrated:

1. Exceptional community service

2. Commitment to academic success

3. Leadership skills

About Specialist Brittany Bria Gordon (2 October 1988 – 13 October 2012)

SPC Brittany Bria Gordon was born October 2, 1988, to Brenda Thompson and Cedric Gordon of St. Petersburg, Florida.  She graduated from St. Petersburg High School in 2006, where she was captain of the girls’ basketball team. She attended the University of Florida and St. Petersburg College before enlisting in the Army in 2010.

SPC Gordon enlisted as a 35F, Military Advanced Individual Training at Fort Huachuca, AZ in August 2010 before being assigned to the 572nd Military Intelligence Company, 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division.

While serving in the 572nd Military Intelligence Company, she deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. On her first deployment, SPC Gordon was assigned as the lead military analyst in Kandahar, Afghanistan providing intelligence support for International Security Assistance Force and Afghan National Directorate of Security.

According to senior leaders, SPC Gordon flourished during the deployment, doing the work of a more senior solider. According to fellow Soldiers, she went on missions outside the wire to better understand her area of operations.

On 13 October 2012, SPC Gordon volunteered to go out on a mission to set the example for fellow junior soldiers. At approximately 10:30, she was moving personnel and equipment off a helicopter, in preparation to conduct an Operational Detachment Alpha site survey with the Afghan National Defense Services. A suicide improvised explosive device detonated, killing SPC Gordon, another American and four Afghan intelligence employees including the Deputy Intelligence Director for Kandahar Providence.

SPC Gordon will be remembered as a professional, intelligent leader and a shining example of the Army’s Warrior Ethos. SPC Gordon never accepted defeat and never quit as she and fellow soldiers spent countless hours preparing for the deployment and updating senior commanders on the security situation around their area of operations. She made it her mission to never leave a fallen comrade by constantly setting the example for her fellow soldiers and ensuring she was always there for anyone in need.

Her memory will live on through her smile, ambition, and energetic personality that touched the lives of so many.

SPC Gordon is the first female 35F Military Intelligence Analyst killed in action while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.  She is one of the eight Military Intelligence female Soldiers to pay the ultimate price while serving in these campaigns.

Educational Incentive Application: The Brittany Bria Gordon Excellence in Achievement Award

Award funded by the Gordon & Rouson families and presented annually at the National Council of Negro Women St. Petersburg Metropolitan Section MLK Day Breakfast

To Apply, Please Submit the Following:

• A completed application form (To request an application form, email reachout@powerbrokermagazine.com)

• A 350-500 word personal biography.  This should include career goals, leadership ability, activities (school/community) and an accomplishment you are most proud of, as well as your long term goals for life, after graduating from college.

• A copy of the most recent report card showing your current GPA.

Qualifications

• Applicant must be a senior enrolled in a Pinellas County school, private or public. He or she must have a GPA of 2.5 or above to be eligible (if your high school does not use the 4.0 grading scale, please convert to it).

• Required for Disbursement of Funds: An acceptance letter from an accredited post-secondary institution and documentation of registration for courses

• Award Amount: $1000

Submission

Send your completed application form, personal biography and report card to:

National Council of Negro Women (St. Petersburg Metropolitan Section), P O Box 12452, St. Petersburg, FL 33733. ATTN: Education Incentives Committee – Gordon Scholarship.