Chief Warrant Officer Joel Smith

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Joel Smith oversees the building of mobile offshore drilling rigs and has established himself as a tireless inspector and respected expert who's known for training and mentoring colleagues.

Smith, who's fluent in Spanish, finds time off-duty to help Latinos in need. During several annual trips, he helped expand an orphanage in Bolivia. On his self-funded trips, he has helped build a soccer court, classrooms and a dining facility for the center, which supports about 230 kids a week. Smith has also traveled to Guatemala to assist in building two churches.

Smith volunteers with the disaster relief component of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention and has responded to natural disasters, including a tornado that struck Alice, Texas, in 2014. Smith also serves as a mentor for elementary school children and coaches a girls' youth soccer team.

Notable quote from nomination: "Chief Warrant Officer Smith makes community service a top priority. He is involved with several organizations doing some pretty amazing work."