THE SAPPER ASSOCIATION
The Cutting Edge of our Country's Sword!
When our Nation needs a tough job done, they call the Army; When the Army needs a tough job done, they call the Sappers!
- LTG (R) Robert B. Flowers
The Sapper Association Hall of Fame
•The Sapper Hall of Fame was formed to honor and preserve the spirit and contributions of America's most extraordinary Sappers. The members of the Sapper Hall of Fame Selection Board take particular care to ensure that only the most extraordinary Sappers are inducted, a difficult mission given the high caliber of all nominees. Their precepts are impartiality, fairness, and scrutiny. Inductees were selected impartially from Sapper units and other associations representing each era. Each nominee was subjected to the scrutiny of the Selection Board to ensure the most extraordinary contributions are acknowledged.
•The Sapper Hall of Fame will preserve the history, unique and extraordinary contributions a Sapper provides our maneuver brethren, Engineer Regiment, families, and citizens of the United States, at home or abroad.
Sapper Association Hall of Fame
1
LTG Robert B. Flowers
Lieutenant General Robert B. Flowers was born in Pennsylvania and resided in several areas of the world as his family moved during his father's military career. Following graduation and commissioning from the Virginia Military Institute in 1969, he completed Airborne and Ranger training and began his career as an Engineer Officer. He served as the Commanding General of the Engineer School and Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
LTG Flowers' commitment to the Sapper Leader Course was essential throughout his career. As the Commanding General of Fort Leonard Wood he would often visit unannounced to several training sites where Sapper students were undergoing the most physical and mentally challenging training the Engineer Regiment developed and executed. Through his efforts the Sapper Leader Course became an approved Department of the Army school where the Sapper Tab became a reality in 2004.
Thanks to LTG Flowers vision and dedication to the Regiment the Engineer Regiment possesses one of the most physically and mentally demanding small unit tactic courses the Army has to date.
2
CSM Ioakimo "Niko" Falaniko
CSM Ioakimo Falaniko's fulfilled thirty-two years of distinguished and selfless service in the United States Army. Command Sergeant Major (CSM) Ioakimo Falaniko, originally of American Samoa, retired on September 19, 2008. His service was celebrated during a retirement ceremony at Gammon Field, Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri, presided by Major General William McCoy, Commanding General US Army Maneuver Support Center and Fort Leonard Wood.
CSM Falaniko joined the U.S. Army on Dec. 29, 1976. CSM Falaniko has served in all key leadership positions in the field of combat engineers starting from Team Leader up to Command Sergeant Major. He served as the Command Sergeant Major of the 14thEngineer Battalion at Fort Lewis, Washington as well as the 1st Armored Division, Engineer Brigade at Giessen, Germany.
CSM Falaniko attended the Sapper Leader Course in 1988, Class 18-8, from 6 September to 3 October 1988 and graduated 3 October 1988. He was then selected to be a Sapper Leader Course Instructor from October 1988 to May 1989 in Patrolling Committee and served in numerous other positions at the course from 1989 thru 1998 culminating as Chief Instructor.
CSM Falaniko is a pioneer of the Sapper Leader Course and one the most respected Senior Enlisted Engineer among Sappers! CSM (R) Falaniko was also a driving force in the creation and development of the Sapper Association.
3
MSG Raul (Roy) P. Benavidez
Medal of Honor Recipient Master Sergeant Raul (Roy) Perez Benavidez,( August 5, 1935 to November 29, 1998) was a former member of the United States Army Special Forces, Studies and Observations Group, he then retired from the United States Army as a Master Sergeant. In 1981 MSG Benavidez received the Medal of Honor from President Ronald Regan for his valorous actions in combat near Lộc Ninh, South Vietnam on May 2, 1968.
MSG Benavidez was recognized as an Honorary Sapper in October of 1997, upon which time he delivered the graduation speech and handed out graduation certificates to the Sappers of class 10-1997.
MSG Benavidez was a man of true character, who lived by the motto of Duty, Honor, and Country throughout his life. MSG Benavidez accepted the invitation to serve as the guest speaker at the Sapper Leader Course despite protocol a Medal of Honor recipient is entitled to, he loved his family, Soldiers and his country.
4
SFC Paul R. Smith
Medal of Honor Recipient SFC Paul R. Smith, (September 24, 1969 – April 4, 2003) was a United States Army Engineer Sergeant First Class who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions in Operation Iraqi Freedom. While serving with B Company, 11th Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division in Baghdad, Iraq, his team was attacked by a group of Iraqi fighters and after a short firefight he was killed by Iraqi fire. For his actions during this battle he was recommended and approved for the Medal of Honor. Two years later, the medal, along with the newly approved Medal of Honor flag, were presented to his family; specifically to his eleven-year-old son David, at a White House ceremony by the President of the United States George W. Bush.
5
SFC Christopher A. Celiz
Medal of Honor Recipient Christopher A. Celiz, (January 12, 1986 – July 12, 2018) was a United States Army Engineer Sergeant First Class who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions in Operation Enduring Freedom, Paktia Province Afghanistan. He distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry above and beyond the call of duty while engaged with the enemy in Paktia Province, Afghanistan, on July 12th, 2018. As the leader of a special purpose unit composed of partnered forces and members of the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Sergeant First Class Celiz led an operation to clear an area of enemy forces and thereby disrupt future attacks against the government of Afghanistan and allied forces. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Joe Biden on December 16, 2021, for his actions on July 12, 2018. President Biden awarded the Medal of Honor to Celiz's family during a ceremony on 16 December 2021. He was the first Jewish recipient of the Medal of Honor in the Global War on Terrorism.
6
CSM Joseph T. Toth
Command Sergeant Major (R) Joe Toth provided 44 years of service (26 years of Active Duty Army and 18 years of Civil Service as a Department of the Army Civilian) to this Nation and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. While on Active Duty Joe served in multiple Airborne, Ranger, Sapper and Mechanized Divisional Engineer units in every leadership position from Team Leader to Command Sergeant Major. Joe attributes his ability to provide this service to the support of his wife Linda, their three children Joseph, Jonathan and Christine and the numerous Officers, Noncommissioned Officers, Soldiers and Civilian Service personnel throughout his career.
From 1976-2002 some of Joe's leadership assignments included; Team Leader and Squad Leader, 307th Engineer Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division, Platoon Sergeant, 16th Engineer Battalion, 1st Armored Division, Sapper Leader Course instructor in Patrolling, Tactics Committee and Course Chief, and First Sergeant and Battalion Command Sergeant Major, 307th Engineer Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division. In 1997 Joe deployed with the 82nd Engineer Battalion, 1st Infantry Division to Bosnia-Herzegovina where he routinely accompanied his Soldiers during the clearing of several thousand land mines, numerous areas, buildings, routes and various caches. In 1999, Joe again deployed with his unit to Kosovo where his unit was credited with significantly reducing the ongoing suffering associated with the humanitarian crises of genocide and the clearing of numerous items involving unexploded ordnance, booby trapped areas/buildings and assisting in re-establishing the government and its supporting services.
As a DOD Civilian employee shortly after U.S. Forces entered Iraq in 2003, Joe was assigned the task of developing individual and unit training to Counter Improvised Explosive Devices (C-IED) and led a team of C-IED subject matter experts from across the Joint community. In 2008 Joe became the Technical Director for the Directorate of C-IED and led the team's review of numerous Joint and Army-wide units/organizations C-IED modernization efforts involving several hundreds of millions of dollars on an annual basis across all of the Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leader and education, Personnel, and Facilities domains to support attacking C-IED networks, defeating the devices and training the force. The team's efforts were credited with saving numerous lives and significantly reduced the amounts of U.S. and Coalition Forces casualties caused by the C-IED fight in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and Africa.
In 2018 Joe served as one of the initial Board Members for the newly formed Sapper Association and was instrumental in transitioning it into a fully functioning non-profit organization capable of supporting the Annual LTG Robert B. Flowers Best Sapper Competition and the Sapper Leaders Course. Joe is a lifetime member of the Sapper Association, Army Engineer Association and recipient of the Bronze and Silver De Fleury Medals.