• 1977 – Attended Field Artillery Officers Advanced Course, Ft. Sill, OK. Graduated in Top 10% of his class.
• 1978 – Attended Nuclear, Chemical Target Analyst School, Ft Sill, OK. Gradated number one in his class.
• 1982 – Attended and graduated from Command and General Staff College through US AR school.
• 1987 – Attended University of Central Michigan. Graduated Summa Cumae Laude with a degree in Masters of Science in Management.
• 1988 – Attended Signal Officer Advance Course, Ft. Gordon, Ga. Graduated

Professional Employment:

Top 10%.

• 1991 – Graduated from Us Army War College, Defense Strategy in Washington, D.C.
• 1993 – Graduated from US Army War College Security Seminar, Washington D.C.
• 1997 – Attended US Army Signal School Pre-Command course.

Advocacy on Behalf of Veterans:

• 1976 – 1979 County Development Director, Desoto County, Florida. Developed the county’s first zoning regulation, first building codes. Established Animal Controls. Member of Florida National Guard. 1979-1999 Full time with the Florida National Guard AGR. Commanded at all levels from Company Command to Brigade Command.
• 1999 – 2003 Legislative specialist for Department of Military Affairs. Glenn was directly responsible for working with Florida Congressional delegation to get legislation and funding for the Florida National Guard. During this time, Glenn was able to increase the state budget from $5 million General Revenue to $15 million. He got legislation passed to provide dollars to fund the paying of college tuition for members of the Florida National Guard.
• 2003-2016 Director of Legislative Affairs for the Department of Military Affairs. During this time Glenn was instrumental in drawing down $18.5 Billion dollars and had three new facilities built for the Florida National Guard. A new armory in Tampa, a Regional Training facility at Camp Blanding and Flagler airfield. He convinced the Governor to establish the Base Commanders’ meetings to ward off Base Realignment and Closure of Florida’s military bases.
• 2016-2019 Executive Director Florida Department of Veterans Affairs. During this time Glenn advanced the Department’s Mission to provide first class state owned veterans nursing homes and increase the number veterans who are earning their benefits from USDVA. All State Owned Veterans nursing homes and the Domiciliary achieved 5 star ratings. First time in the history of the Department. He engineered the effort to build two new nursing homes in the state. He convinced USDVA that we did not have to build a $58 million dollar mansion, but using our former model we saved the state $20 million dollars. He began a campaign to make sure we had a presence at all veteran events in the counties across the state. This provided information to veterans who had never applied for their benefits.
• 2019-2021 Veterans Advocate, Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Recruited veterans to work for the Department. Helped current veteran employees’ acquire benefits they had earned during their service. Established the DOD SKILLBRIDGE program with the agency becoming the first state law enforcement agency in the nation to have this program.
• Chairmen of the Korean War Memorial Fund Drive in Tallahassee, Florida. Though his passion and hard work, financial support was easily raised to build the Memorial.
• Worked tirelessly to identify veterans buried in unmarked county graves and return their remains to any known family he could find or had them buried in National Cemeteries.
• Worked with K-9 for Warriors to secure state funding to build new kennels and purchase the dogs for training in order to give veterans a service dog. This effort doubled K-9 for Warriors ability to train and provide service animals to veterans in need.
• Glenn worked tirelessly to get the Tampa Bay 211 Crisis Center hotline statewide to prevent suicide among our veterans. This effort resulted in state funding that provides for the hiring of veterans to do peer to peer counseling that directly reduced suicides in the 211 network across the state. A law was passed that allows FDVA to partner with the Crisis Center to continue this effort. His actions and time devoted to Veterans has certainly saved lives in despair.
• Worked in concert with other state Department of Veterans’ Affairs to bring veterans with long term health care issues back to Florida where they would be closer to their families.
• Worked to establish a National Cemetery here in Tallahassee. We were the only state without a cemetery in its Capitol city. He worked tirelessly to engage both state and national government officials to make his happen.
• While on the University of South Florida Council of 100 established a Veteran’s Service center for the school. Worked with FSU President John Thrasher to establish a student Veteran’s Center.
• Active supporter of Gold Star Mothers and their families.
• As Executive Director of FDVA he worked to expand legal. Driver licensing and dental services at Veteran Stand Downs throughout the state. The legal services enabled homeless veterans to get minor legal issues solved by a setting Judge and issuance of driver’s license which made it possible for these veterans to get a car for work.
• During his tenure as Executive Director of FDVA, Glenn spent countless hours advocating for better health care services, increase in program funding and changes in laws both at the federal and state that would improve the living standards for veterans in the state of Florida.

Civic Activities and Contributions:

• Worked with the National Guard bureau to establish one of the first Youth ChalleNGe Academies in the county at Camp Blanding, Florida This program brings 200 at risk youth to Camp Blanding twice a year to work with them through a military structure to teach them disciple, moral standards and how to be a productive member of Society. In addition, they can earn a high school degree through the GED program.
• Through his efforts, the Florida Legislature funded two programs to help the youth in Florida. He partnered the Florida National Guard with cities around the state to help trouble youth, ages 13-17, receive help with staying in school. Utilizing the Armories around the state, he established the About Face program that brought students referred by school guidance counselors as needing help to the armories after school. They spent two and one half hours working on homework and life coping skills. These skills included financial literacy, how to apply for and keep a job, interview skills and how to be a good citizen. The second program was called Forward March. This program was designed to help high school drop outs agesl7-33 get a GED and find a job. He partnered the Florida Guard with the Career Source centers around the state to mentor and coach these youth through writing resumes, interview skills, identify life’s work they might good at and place these youth in jobs.
• Glenn is a 32nd Degree Mason and throughout his life has always been active in all they do.
• Honorary Professor of Military Science at FAMU.
• Participates in Wreaths across America and has since it started.
• Major supporter of Boy and Girl Scouts. Started Brownie Troop in the neighborhood while his daughter was in scouts.

Awards and Honors:

Military

• Legion of Merit
• Meritorious Service Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters
• Army Commendation Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters
• Army Achievement Medal
• Army Reserve Components Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters o National Defense Service Medal (2)
• Humanitarian Service Medal (2)
• Florida Cross
• Florida Meritorious Medal
• Florida Service Ribbon (5)
• Florida Commendation Medal (2)
• Florida Meritorious Service Ribbon (4)
• Florida State Active Duty Ribbon (7)
• Army Reserve Medal of Excellence
• Order of St. Barbara
• Bronze order of Mercury

Civic:

• Governor’s Medal of Merit 
• Governor’s Florida Veterans’ Service Medal
• Florida National Guard’s Charlie Maddox Patriotism Award
• Florida’s Celebration of Honorable Service of Glenn Sutphin,

Written Narrative:

It is a great honor and privilege to nominate LTC (Ret.) Glenn W. Sutphin, Jr. for membership in the Florida Veteran’s Hall of Fame, class of 2022. Glenn has spent his entire adult life advocating for veterans, soldiers and their families.

He entered the Army in June 1969 served 30 years on active duty and with the Florida National Guard. Following his retirement in 1999, he became the legislative specialist in the Legislative Affairs office for the Department of Military Affairs. In this role, Glenn was able to get laws changed and initiated that helped the Florida National Guard during both its State and Federal missions more efficiently. For example, he was able to get legislation passed that provides tuition assistance to all members of the Florida National Guard and a law passed to protect the Florida National Guard while on state active duty from being evicted from their apartments or cars reposed in response to state emergencies. These are just two examples of how he is always on the lookout to help others with their ability to serve.

In 2003, he became the Director of Legislative Affairs for the Department of Military Affairs. During his tenure, he drew down more than 18 billion dollars of federal funds to build new armories and other facilities in the state. He helped Governor Rick Scott organize a quarterly Governor’s Base Commanders meeting that brought the needs of the active duty military to the Governor’s attention. These needs were then met by state agency heads for solution. General Ron Harrison, former Adjutant General of Florida offered the following comments on Glenn’s tenure. “While his position at DMA was focused on the Florida National Guard, he spent hundreds of hours of personal time and effort helping bring closure to the toughest issues for military veterans and particularly their families. From my vantage point as TAG, I saw Glenn literally become the “Go to Person” for any veteran’s issues that needed solutions and couldn’t be solved in normal channels. Glenn’s dedication, commitment, competence and professionalism to our veterans over many years and without recognition makes him a perfect example of a member of the State of Florida Veterans Hall of Fame.”

In 2016, Governor Scott appointed Glenn Executive Director of the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs. He immediately begin to reach out to the veterans in the state to connect them to their earned benefits. He partnered with the Department of Motor Vehicles and Highway safety to identify veterans as they registered their vehicles, got driver’s licenses or renewed their registrations. By simply checking a box on the form identifying yourself as a veteran, results in an email to you with all the benefits of being a veteran in Florida.

Also in 2016, he took on the USDVA to lower the cost of design and build for a new State Owned Veterans Nursing Home. The USDVA construction office was trying to require the state to build to federal standards. He was finally able to convince the Secretary of Veterans Affairs that we could build using state standards and provide a quality home. That home is our newest home at Port St. Lucie. All our state owned Veteran’s Nursing Homes achieved five (5) star ratings during his time as Director. This had never happened before in the Department. A tribute to his striving to do the best for our veterans in their time of need.

I lay these examples out to demonstrate his ability to get things done. He will not take no for answer. He has had as many as eight state agencies in a room at one time to get issues worked out on who needs to do what for a construction project to renovate a former USDVA nursing home for our use. He has an energy and drive that others want emulate. Every one want to work for Glenn, because he is winner who wants only the best for the veterans in the state.

Following his tenure as Executive Director, the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles and Highway Safety hired him to be their veteran’s advocate. There are over 250 veterans in the agency. Most of them work for the Florida Highway Patrol. Glenn initiated a recruiting effort at the military bases in South Georgia and Florida for former military policemen getting out to serve in the Florida Highway Patrol. This effort resulted in the very first DoD SKILLBRIDGE program for law enforcement to be established here in Florida. He spent many hours counseling veterans with the agency on how to connecting veterans with their earned benefits.

Even though he has retired, veterans and their families continue to reach out to him for help. His passion and compassion for doing things right for Veterans are beyond compare. The things he has done for the veterans in this state are too numerous to list in 10 pages. His service to veterans in this state spans over 50 years. There are few that have made a lifetime of honoring veterans and families with service to and for them as Glenn Sutphin. He is most deserving of induction the Florida Veteran’s Hall of Fame.