OK, I’m upset. In 1968, while stationed at Thule, Greenland, I learned that there was an ANT-arctic service ribbon for military personnel stationed below the Antarctic Circle, but no arctic service ribbon for personnel stationed above the Arctic Circle.

Utilizing the USAF suggestion process, I designed a ribbon and wrote a proposal and sent it through channels. I was told that my suggestion had been rejected. Imagine my chagrin just now when I saw this:

Airmen with service time in the Arctic Circle are now eligible for a new Overseas Short Tour Ribbon device. [snip] A morale visit to Thule in 2000 by the former commander of Air Force Space Command led to the rekindling of an idea for Arctic recognition, which was submitted in 1999, by former Thule airman, TSgt. Edward Crowson, now a Master Sergeant at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska, officials said.

Sergeant Crowson proposed an Air Force Arctic service award after hearing about the Navy?s Arctic Service Ribbon from some visiting Navy divers.

?I never expected anything to come of it and quite frankly, I?m floored,? said Sergeant Crowson who had all but given up on his idea since he?d originally been informed that it had been rejected.

?Thule was something totally different than anything I?ve ever experienced. I?m really glad that this got approved, especially for everybody there now,? he said.

I think that suggestion program needs some tweaking.