PHILADELPHIA – Joseph Martella, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Area Port Director in Philadelphia, accepted the Seven Seals Award presented to him by the Department of Defense’s Employer Support for the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) on August 10 in Indiantown Gap, Pa.
The Seven Seals Award is the broadest and most inclusive award given by ESGR and is presented in recognition of “meritorious leadership and initiative in support of the men and women who serve America in the National Guard and Reserve.”
The ESGR is an office in the Department of Defense that develops and promotes supportive work environments for service members in the reserve components through outreach, recognition, and educational opportunities. It also provides assistance in resolving conflicts between the service members and their employers.
“To the companies that employ our service members: I cannot thank you enough,” said Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, Pennsylvania’s adjutant general, who served as keynote speaker. “The level of support, the level of understanding, the level of commitment you provide to our Guardsmen is invaluable.”
Estafanio Teixeira, a full-time CBP officer in Philadelphia and a commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, nominated the Area Port of Philadelphia.
Presently, more than 20 CBP employees in the Area Port of Philadelphia serve our country as members of the National Guard and Reserve. The Area Port of Philadelphia includes Port Offices in Philadelphia, Wilmington, Del., Harrisburg, Pa., and Pittsburgh.
Most of these employees have deployed on combat missions to Afghanistan, Iraq, or Syria, and have completed peacetime missions across the globe.
When these employees deploy for Guard or Reserve missions, other CBP officers and specialists accept additional responsibility to ensure that CBP can continue to conduct its priority missions of trade enforcement, narcotics interdiction, passenger processing, and border security.
Area Port Director Martella accepted the plaque on behalf of the Area Port.
“It’s pretty incredible to think that some of our CBP employees take exceptional pride in wearing the uniforms of two agencies that are equally as committed to protecting our nation’s security – the U.S. armed forces and Customs and Border Protection – and I am truly honored that the Area Port of Philadelphia has been recognized as an employer that supports our Guard and Reserve employees,” Martella said. “Our nation’s uniformed services personify CBP’s core values of vigilance, integrity and service to country and so CBP works extraordinarily hard to attract and accommodate Guard, Reserve and military veterans looking to continue to serve.”
CBP extends an invitation to Guard and Reserve members, and to military veterans who are ending their active duty contracts, to come join our team. Check out our hiring veterans webpage or visit career with CBP to learn about benefits or to apply.
CBP’s border security mission is led at our nation’s Ports of Entry by CBP officers and agriculture specialists from the Office of Field Operations. CBP screens international travelers and cargo and searches for illicit narcotics, unreported currency, weapons, counterfeit consumer goods, prohibited agriculture, invasive weeds and pests, and other illicit products that could potentially harm the American public, U.S. businesses, and our nation’s safety and economic vitality.
Learn more about CBP at www.CBP.gov.
Follow the Director of CBP’s Baltimore Field Office on Twitter at @DFOBaltimore for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos, and CBP’s Office of Field Operations on Instagram at @cbpfieldops.