Travelers along Drinkwater Boulevard in Old Town Scottsdale will see tributes to the community's veterans and military service members in the form of large street light banners as the Scottsdale Salutes program continues for its third year.
The Scottsdale Salutes program was initiated by the Veterans Advisory Commission as part of their charge to elevate awareness and appreciation for veterans in the community.
Scottsdale’s connections with those in uniform run deep.
City founder Winfield Scott - a Captain in the United States Army who was wounded five times in the Civil War - is featured each year on a Scottsdale Salutes banner. He is joined by other veterans and service members who have strong connections to the Scottsdale community, either by living or working here.
The banners will be installed along Drinkwater Boulevard from Osborn Road to Scottsdale Road from Nov. 1 through Nov. 15.
Scottsdale Salutes Honorees: 2024
| Service Member | Service Member Summary |
|---|---|
Winfield Scott | During the Civil War, city founder Winfield Scott volunteered and served as a captain in Company C of the 126th New York Volunteer Infantry. Wounded five times during the war, including during the 1863 battle at Gettysburg, Scott went on to become a missionary Baptist minister who founded several churches (the town of Winfield, Kan., is also named in his honor) before arriving in the Arizona territory and founding Scottsdale. He served as national chaplain of the Grand Army of the Republic Civil War veterans’ group and in the Arizona Territorial Legislature. |
Jim Bruner | Jim served as a Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer. He received training at Lackland AFB Texas, and his entire active duty was completed Lincoln AFB, Nebraska, about 140 miles from his hometown of Lake View, Iowa. As a young JAG officer, Jim handled court martials, and other military legal issues. After concluding his military service, Jim and his wife Sandy moved to Scottsdale, where for more than 50 years, has committed his life toward making Scottsdale, Maricopa County, and Arizona a better place to live and work. An attorney and banker by profession, he has provided outstanding leadership in civic, business, and philanthropic endeavors as well as in city, county, and state government service. He served two terms on the Scottsdale City Council, and was also Chair of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors on two occasions. He was named an Arizona Historymaker in 2014. |
James Byrd | Lance Corporal Byrd was stationed in Oahu Hawaii and served two tours in the Middle East, deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan. |
Stephen Casares | Following graduation from West Point, Steve was commissioned as a Military Intelligence Officer and assigned to Fort Campbell, KY with the 2-506th Infantry Regiment. During that time he deployed to East Paktika, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. His unit saw combat action in the border area of Afghanistan-Pakistan. Steve then was selected to serve in the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) at Arlington National Cemetery, where his billets included intelligence officer and then Executive Officer of the Presidential Salute Battery and Caisson Platoon. Steve’s final assignment in active duty was in the Pentagon, Army Foreign Intelligence Directorate. Prior to returning to Scottsdale, Steve served as an instructor at his alma mater, the United States Military Academy at West Point. |
Brian Cederlind | Brian was a C-130 navigator during the Vietnam War. |
Jacob Chavez | Jacob served as a Combat Medic and deployed to Afghanistan with the First Infantry Division – The Big Red One – in 2019. |
Alan Christensen | Alan served in the Marine Corps infantry and with security forces. He’s currently a web designer with the city of Scottsdale, and he also plays ice hockey for the Arizona Warriors veterans hockey program, through which he represented the USA in Denmark in a tournament of veterans hockey programs from around the world. |
Dennis Cooper | Dr. Cooper served as a Major in the US Army Medical Corps at Darnall Army Hospital, Fort Hood Texas. During his first year of active duty he was the only ophthalmologist who knew how to do the new procedure of lens implants for cataracts and he taught multiple other ophthalmologists at his base and others the new surgery. During his service, he took care of injured veterans, service members, retirees and dependents and performed advanced plastic surgical remedies on the injured and hundreds of surgeries on children with birth defects. At the conclusion of his tour of duty he was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for his work. After his years in the military, he moved to Scottsdale and began his own private practice and joined the medical staff of Scottsdale Memorial Hospital, now Honor Health, where he went on to serve as Chair of Surgery, Chief of Ophthalmology, earn multiple Top Doc awards from Phoenix Magazine, the hospital community service award/Humanitarian of the year in 2019 for his teaching, caring for staff and years of volunteer work for the Navajo Nation. |
Luke Danzo | Commander Luke Danzo served as a Navy helicopter pilot, including tours as a flight instructor, combat search and rescue officer and as the Operations Officer, Helicopter Sea Combat Wing Pacific Command. He concluded his career as a Professor of Naval Science and the Executive Officer of Naval ROTC Program at Arizona State University. |
Austin Deuel | One of only six Marine Combat Artists in Vietnam, Austin Deuel was in combat and documented various battles, their aftermath and downtime of the troops via painting and photography. After military service, he lived in Scottsdale for 50+ years, served as a commander of VFW Post 3513, and was the sculptor of "The Chaplain" at City Hall. |
Daniel Diaz | Daniel is a Scottsdale resident who joined the Arizona Army National Guard in 2011, following in the footsteps of his two older brothers, and honoring the service of his great grandfather, who served in the U.S. Army Air Corps in World War II. Danie’s service includes a yearlong deployment to Kuwait in 2019-2020, and he is currently ending another yearlong in-state deployment. He is a Sergeant working as an Information Technology Specialist. |
Andrew Fletcher | After graduating from Saguaro High School in 1987, nineteen-year-old Andrew Fletcher enlisted in the US Army, where he would serve in various places around the world including assignments in Panama, Germany, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He was given the option to attend college and earn an officer’s commission, which he did through the ROTC program at Arizona He would spend the remainder of his service in various roles including Armor Company Commander, Chief of Knowledge Management for US Army Europe, and Advisor to the Senior General Officer of the Afghan National Defense Security Forces. In 2020, Colonel Fletcher retired as the Director of Mission Command after 33 years of service and he has since moved back to Arizona. |
Jason Harris | Throughout the time that SSgt Harris served in the United States Marine Corps, he was deployed on three separate occasions, earning two Navy Achievement medals and Navy Commendation medal. He also was recognized as the "Non-Commissioned Officer of the Quarter" on 4 separate occasions for leadership and team building efficiency. SSgt Harris was also named "Combat Instructor of the Quarter" out of 300 instructors for his high level of competence and leadership abilities as an instructor. |
Louis J. Iacovo, Jr. | In the Vietnam era, after attending Naval Officer Candidate School, Lou was selected as a member of the Nuclear Reactors program and served directly on Admiral Rickover's staff developing the Navy’s nuclear fleet. |
Eric King | Eric spent six years in the US Air Force, four of which were stationed in RAF Mildenhall, UK as an Airborne Cryptologic Linguist (Arabic), frequently deploying to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Southern Watch (Iraq). He is a Scottsdale resident who works in the city’s Information Technology Department. |
Helen King | Helen served as a Cryptologic Linguist and trained at the Defense Language Institute at the Presidio in Monterey, CA. She was stationed in RAF Mildenhall, UK for four years, and regularly deployed to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Southern Watch. |
Arnaud Longeau | Commander Longeau is a warfare qualified Civil Engineer Corps Officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve and a Service-Disabled Veteran mobilized to Active Duty to serve in Afghanistan. He has also previously served as the Executive Officer for Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Fourteen, Gulfport, MS. He is currently serving with AFRICOM. |
Allison Martin | Allison Martin is a 2019 graduate of Chaparral High School. In joining the Navy, she was selected into the highly competitive nuclear program, in which she was the first in her class to qualify as a nuclear electrician – 3 months ahead of schedule. Petty Officer Martin is currently serving on the staff of Commander, Submarine Squadron Eleven in San Diego. |
Robert McDonell | Robert was commissioned into the Navy by President Harry Truman in 1948. He was sent to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, as a Sea-Bee in 1952. Robert returned stateside in 1954 as an active Reservist and was a Commander of Sea-Bee Div. 12-6 from 1963 through 1966. He remained an active Reservist until 1972. |
Sam Merrill | During Sam’s military career he served as part of the U.S. Air Defense Command at Nike missile sites. |
| Jack Mosley United States Air Force | With a falsified birth certificate, Jack Mosley entered the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1942 at age 15. He went on to serve as a bomber crewman with the 8th Air Force conducting the daylight bombing of Nazi Germany. Surviving the war, his service continued with the Air Force, including in Korea. He crewed B-17, B-24, B-29, B-36 and B-52 bombers and ended his service with 16 Air Medals, a Purple Heart, Distinguished Flying Cross and Silver Star and Bronze Star. |
Christopher Nash | In 34 years of service, Col. Nash commanded at the platoon, company, advisor team, battalion and regimental level. He is a veteran of Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi, Operation Southern Watch, Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Unified Assistance and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. His awards include the Legion of Merit and Bronze Star for Valor with gold star. |
Andrew Nebgen | Andrew served as a senior weather observer in support of air combat operations Korea. |
Jane Nebgen | Jane served in Korea Assigned to Supreme Allied Headquarters supporting Commander General Douglas MacArthur. |
Steve Parks | As a Navy Seal, Senior Chief Parks served in a number of different Seal Teams in action around the world during his service. |
Adam Phillips | Phillips is an, “Afghanistan veteran, unassuming nice guy, and real life underdog.” |
Mike Phillips | Mike was an ammunition technician who also served as a rifle coach and on an administrative inspection team. His duty assignments included Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, Camp Henoko in Okinawa and Camp Pendleton in California. Mike was meritoriously promoted to the ranks of corporal and sergeant. After military service, he served Scottsdale for many years as a journalist, and then on the city’s communications and public affairs team. |
Don Prior | Don Prior served on active duty in the U.S. Navy as a Seabee from 1963-1965. Since then, he has been a tireless community supporter, advocate and volunteer. He is a past president of the Scottsdale Historical Society, and of the Arizona Historical Society, and he is a longtime member of the Papago Trackers who are keeping the history of the WWII Papago POW Camp alive. He also served on the Scottsdale City Council from 1994-1998, and he and wife Barbara attend and support all things Scottsdale, especially those honoring veterans and celebrating history! We are very happy to be able to honor Don Prior this year. |
Joe Rios | Lt. Col. Rios enlisted in the Arizona Army National Guard in September 1959 and reached the rank of Lt. Col. in 1990. His military service in the Guard included a wide variety of logistics and supply positions. He ended his military service as the Plans Operations and Military Support Officer for the HQ State Area Command, Arizona Army National Guard in March 1998 after completing 42 years of service. He was also well known in Scottsdale for his community service. He served as Captain in his Neighborhood Block Watch Program and was a member of the Scottsdale Block Watch Advisory Council. He was also a graduate of the Scottsdale Police Citizens Academy, and President of the Booster Club for Coronado High School. |
Philip Shelton | Phil served in military electronics/communication repair in Korea and at Scott AFB. Philip has lived in Scottsdale since 1964. He is a former Post Commander of Scottsdale VFW Post 3513, and part of the committee that built the Chaplain Sculpture in honor of veterans at City Hall. His company, Mexican Tile Imports, provided all the granite tile for the base for that piece of Scottsdale’s public art collection. |
James Smothermon | James served 32 years in the USAF as an officer/pilot with many significant command assignments including Commander, U.S. Air Forces Korea, United Nations Command Air Component. He flew over 100 missions as a RF-4 pilot in Vietnam and retired with nearly 5,300 flying hours in numerous combat aircraft. |
Ryan So | Ryan Served in the United States Navy Reserve as a Hospital Corpsman From August 2010 to June 2024. During his years in service, he attended field medical training with the Marine Corps, deployed to the Middle East with Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron 12, and deployed to New York City to provide COVID-19 support. Ryan was also a detective with the Scottsdale Police Department, wearing the badge in Scottsdale for nine years. Tragically, he lost is life in the line of duty on June 13, 2024. Ryan embodied service to country, to community, and to his comrades in arms, and we are proud to honor his service. |
Iwan Sumantri | Iwan is a Gulf War veteran who served aboard the destroyer USS Harry W. Hill stationed out of San Diego. |
Donna Tew | Lt. Col. Tew’s military career spanned 24 years as a military nurse with 4 deployments. Her assignments included Inpatient and outpatient care, AeroEvac, working for Inspector General and Chief Nurse. Today she helps train other nurses and military healthcare specialists as part of HonorHealth’s Military Partnership Program. |
Dwight Ticgelaor | Dwight served in the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Division in Vietnam. |
Robert Tinder | Robert served his country for more than 21 years as part of the U.S. Air Force. His service took him around the U.S. and to many other places around the world including Germany, Spain, Italy, Norway, Guam, Afghanistan, Turkey, and Saudia Arabia, to name a few. Robert spent a large part of his career as a Crew Chief and earned the highest enlisted rank of Chief Master Sargent while participating in a number of foreign deployments. |
Seantiana Tompkins-King | Specialist Tompkins-King is assigned to the Army Counterintelligence Command Region VI in Honolulu, Hawaii. |
Chris Tran | Chris’ service includes time in active duty and the reserves. He deployed to Afghanistan in 2009-2010 where he was awarded the Bronze Star and Combat Action Badge. LTC Tran recently took command of a battalion in Hawaii in June 2024. |
Marvin Weide | Marvin joined the Coast Guard at age 17, and served as a Quartermaster on a buoy tender out of San Pedro California and a Cutter out of Long Beach California. He returned to Arizona and raised his family in Scottsdale, and still resides here today, enjoying life at age 88. |
Susan Wilder | Susan Wilder was a military physician whose duty stations included attending physician and department chairperson, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland and Physician, Operation Restore Hope, Africa. |
Denny Wisely | Denny Wisely entered the Naval Aviation Cadet program in 1961, and went on to earn his wings and join the fleet. As a Fighter Pilot in VF-114 over three separate deployments, he flew 350 combat missions over Vietnam, flying from the deck of the USS KITTY HAWK. During his second deployment in 1967 he was the first to shoot down two enemy aircraft and was later shot down over North Vietnam by ground fire while on Hanoi strike. He and his back-seater were recovered in a dramatic rescue operation. After three separate tours with VF-114 aboard Kitty Hawk, he went on to be CO of Fighter Squadron 151 aboard USS MIDWAY home-ported in Yokosuka, Japan. He was also Commander and Flight Leader of the Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron, Executive Officer of the USS AMERICA, and Commanding Officer of the USS JOHN F. KENNEDY. He retired from the U.S Navy in October 1994 as a Rear Admiral. His awards include the Silver Star, Purple Heart, 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry and 29 Air Medals. |
Grant Zaro | Grant grew up in Scottsdale and attended Notre Dame Prep. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy and was commissioned into the U.S. Marine Corps at top of his class in 2018. He is about to leave for his second Middle East deployment. |
Troy Zaro | Troy grew up in Scottsdale and attended Notre Dame Prep. After graduating, he enlisted in the Marine Corps where he serves as an aircrewman on CH-53 Super Stallion helicopters. He was deployed to Okinawa, Japan, in 2022 and he is currently stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, CA. |
Mike Barbano |