By Dino W. Buchanan,
Honolulu District Public Affairs
FORT SHAFTER, HI -- Maj. Evan Ting, operations officer, G3, Division of Emergency Management, Pacific Ocean Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, recently was presented the Bronze Order of the de Fleury Medal by Honolulu District Commander Lt. Col. Douglas B. Guttormsen during ceremonies held at Fort Shafter, Hawaii.
Maj. Ting is a former commander of Honolulu District-based 565th Engineer Detachment and Honolulu District employee who transferred to the Corps’ Pacific Ocean Division in 2011.
The Bronze de Fleury Medal is awarded by the Army Engineer Association and is presented to individuals who have “…rendered significant service or support to an element of the U.S. Army Engineer Regiment.”
Ting’s de Fleury was awarded in recognition of his “exceptionally meritorious service to the Engineer Regiment from 1992 to the present…he readily brings to the Engineer Regiment a strong blend of leadership and technical experience acquired serving as a construction manager, field and design engineer and project manager in the private sector.”
According to his citation, Maj. Ting was given the task of standing up the 565th Engineer Detachment Forward Engineer Support Team-Advance (FEST-A) based at Honolulu District, “building his team from concept to fully mission capable in one year” and “has proven the Army’s engineer capabilities mission after mission.”
Between 2009 to present, Maj. Ting conducted 12 major training events, participated in four theatre exercises in three countries and fielded 100 per cent of the unit’s equipment, earning laudatory remarks from supported units and Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Ting led the detachment in conducting a technical engineer road reconnaissance of 50 miles of road in the Republic of Palau and later led a joint combined engineer-civil affairs team in conducting 12 facility assessments throughout Thailand while engaging with Thai political officials, general officers and local populace. “His leadership, expertise and interpersonal skills were crucial to establishing the relevance of Army engineers to PACOM, USARPAC and the Joint U.S. Military Action Group in Thailand.”
Ting also led his team in conducting an infrastructure assessment in the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) whereby the official technical report was used by U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll and U.S. Department of State to forecast future support projects in the RMI. For these efforts, Maj. Ting and his team were personally lauded by the U.S. Embassy in RMI and the Chief of Engineers.
Most recently, Maj. Ting distinguished himself “by exceptionally meritorious achievement as the Engineer, Office of the Defense Representative, United States Embassy, Islamabad, Pakistan from Aug. 24 to Dec. 13, 2010 where, in support of Humanitarian Assistance Operations in Pakistan…he displayed outstanding professionalism and superior technical skill in assessing and implanting critical infrastructure improvements for three forward operating bases andlife support facilities…his incredible depth of knowledge was instrumental in guiding the Pakistani engineers to achieve his vision of a safe and effective base of operations in the southern task force area.”
According to his citation, Maj. Ting’s work “was critical to the Joint Task Force’s success in delivering over 26 million pounds of relief supplies and evacuation of over 40,000 flood victims.”
As the Corps of Engineers implemented the U.S. Army Regimental system, the senior Engineer leadership sought a method for the Corps of Engineers to honor those individuals who have provided significant contributions to Army Engineering. The Army Regimental system was developed to emphasize the history, and traditions of the Corps; so MG Daniel R. Schroeder, then Commandant General of Fort Leonard Wood and the Engineer School Commandant, wanted an award that would tie in with the beginning of the nation and the Army Corps of Engineers.
In 1777, a French Engineer volunteered to serve with the American Army in its fight for independence from Britain. Francois Louis Tesseidre de Fleury was born in St. Hippolyte, France in 1749; was trained as an engineer; and served in the French Army during the Corsican campaign.
For his bravery in the desperate battle at Stony Point, NY in 1779 while attached to the Army Corps, de Fleury’s courage under fire won him accolades from the Continental Congress. And on Oct. 1, 779 de Fleury stood before the Continental Congress where he was praised for his valor and awarded a medal struck in his honor.
The Engineer Regiment adopted the de Fleury Medal as an award because of the values demonstrated by the man for whom it was struck – values of special meaning to Engineer Soldiers.