Members of the Brookhaven National Laboratory community gathered to honor 359 colleagues at the 2024 Employee Awards and VIP Service Celebration on November 13. The event, held in Berkner Hall, recognized individuals for their contributions and long-term service to the laboratory.
The ceremony included the presentation of several prestigious awards. Twenty-two staff members received accolades in categories such as Science & Technology, Engineering, Brookhaven, Excellence in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Distinguished Administrator Awards.
The Science & Technology Award was given to five recipients: Michael Begel from the Physics Department; Yoshitaka Hatta from the Physics Department; Chang-Yong Nam from the Center for Functional Nanomaterials; Edward O'Brien from the Physics Department; and Deepak Raparia from the Collider-Accelerator Department.
Engineering Awards were presented to Jesse Fite from the Collider-Accelerator Department; Robert Pisani from the Physics Department; Eric Raguzin from the Instrumentation Department; Daniel Weiss from the Collider-Accelerator Department; and a team comprising Wei Xu, Weihe Xu, Juan Zhou, Hanfei Yan, and Evgeny Nazaretski from National Synchrotron Light Source II.
Brookhaven Awards recognized key contributors in support functions. The recipients were Dan Dandola of Business Services Directorate, Michelle McQueen of Facilities & Operations Directorate, Aleida Perez of Office of Educational Programs, and Frank Toldo of Physics Department.
Excellence in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Awards went to David Biersach of Information Technology Division and Fernando Camino of Center for Functional Nanomaterials. Distinguished Administrator Awards were given to Cynthia Biancarosa of Office of Educational Programs and Lynanne DiFilippo of Collider-Accelerator Department.
Additionally, employees with long-term service were honored. Veljko Radeka was recognized for 60 years at Instrumentation Department. Other notable mentions include Charles Carlson with 59 years at Collider-Accelerator Department and Vincent Lo Destro with 58 years also at Collider-Accelerator Department.