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Colonel Gabriel Honored

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Brian McCurdy
  • The USAF Band
BOLLING AFB, D.C. --  The National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations Foundation's (NECO) Board of Directors and Selection Committee selected retired Col. Arnald D. Gabriel as the recipient of the 2010 Ellis Island Medal of Honor. The medal was awarded to Colonel Gabriel on May 8, 2010, in a ceremony on Ellis Island, N.Y., in the Great Hall--where his own parents walked through almost one hundred years ago.

The Medal was created to honor the many ancestral groups who through struggle, sacrifice and success, helped build this great nation and who share their personal and professional gifts for the benefit of humanity.

Colonel Gabriel was the Commander and Conductor of The U.S. Air Force Band from 1964 until 1985, and now serves as the Band's Conductor Emeritus.

Other persons of note in the 2010 Ellis Island Medal of Honor ceremony were actors Robert Loggia, Jayne Seymour and James Keitch. Former Major League catcher Mike Piazza was also awarded the medal.

Past medalists have included six U.S. Presidents, as well as Nobel Prize winners and leaders of industry, education, the arts, professional sports and government. Congratulations Colonel Gabriel!