Triangle, Va. (March 29, 2012) – San Diego Union-Tribune Military Affairs Staff Writer Gretel C. Kovach has been named the recipient of both the 2012 Major Megan McClung Award, for a distinguished example of reporting by an individual covering U.S. Marines abroad and General Oliver P. Smith Award, for a distinguished example of local news reporting by an individual that illuminates the U.S. Marine Corps’ relationship with local communities. The awards will be presented at the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s Annual Awards Ceremony April 21, 2012 at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Va.

Kovach is being honored with The Major Megan McClung Award for her reporting with the San Diego Union-Tribune in Sangin, Afghanistan, February-March 2011, with 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment. She is receiving The General Oliver P. Smith Award, for her reporting with the San Diego Union-Tribune on “The Long Walk Home: A Wounded Marine’s Recovery.”

Marine Corps Heritage Foundation President and CEO Lt. Gen. Robert Blackman, Jr., USMC (Ret) will present the awards and Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. James F. Amos will serve as the keynote speaker. Seventeen awards will be presented to individuals who have contributed to advancing and preserving Marine Corps history. Each year, the Foundation recognizes Marines and civilians in categories including historical scholarship, journalism, letters and arts, and more. Recipients this year are from across the country.

To view details on each of the awards and the winning submissions, go to:
 http://www.marineheritage.org/Awards.asp. To date, 16 of the 17 award recipients have been announced.

Dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Marine Corps history, the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation was established in 1979 as a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization. The Foundation supports the historical programs of the Marine Corps in ways not possible through government funds, providing grants and scholarships for research and the renovation, restoration and commissioning of historical Marine Corps artifacts and landmarks. Securing the necessary funding for the complete construction of the National Museum of the Marine Corps and Heritage Center is the Foundation’s current primary mission while continuing to provide program support for the Corps’ historical, museum, and educational activities.

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