US Navy veteran, George B. Dodge, Sr., is the recent recipient of the Pensacola Chapter of the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge national award, “The George Washington Honor Medal,” for his extensive work in building the Pensacola Veterans Day Parade to the level at which it was recognized by the Veterans Administration in Washington, D.C. as a “Regional Veterans Day Site.” He built the Pensacola Veterans Day Parade from a paltry 128 people in 2010 to nearly 3,000 participants in 2013.
Dodge worked for three years as a Veteran’s Advocate with the Gulf Coast Veterans Advocacy Council. This Freedom Foundation Honor also recognizes his many efforts in the Escambia County community in park restoration, significant blood donations to One Blood of Florida, and his leadership as President of the AHEPA Pensacola Charitable Foundation, Inc. which awards scholarships to worthy students seeking to attend college or who are attending college. Under his leadership as President of AHEPA, Daphne Chapter 296, he brought a very successful National Convention to Pensacola for the first time in over a half century.
Dodge worked with Boy Scouts of America, Troop 432, for over twenty years. He was assistant scout leader helping with badges and camp outs. He was awarded the Marion C. Leach Conservation Award. He is also a member of the Order of the Arrow.
His public service works through his own 501 (c) 3 as founder and President of “First Nations Intertribal Association, Inc.” took Dodge to many of the US Native American reservations as well as Guatemala and Honduras. While there, Dodge delivered clothing, appliances, medical and school supplies to those in need. He was the only one to bring hurricane relief to the Chitamacha Chocktaw people of Louisiana following devastating hurricanes in 2005 and 2006. He also assisted in preparations for Hurricane Ivan in Escambia County, FL in 2004. Following that devastation he chain-sawed many dangerous trees and tree limbs away from homes and streets and distributed food and water to those in need. He was recognized by Florida’s governor, Charlie Crist, with the “Governor’s Points of Light” Award in 2008.
George B. Dodge, Sr. joined the Greek Fraternal organization “American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA)” in 2008 and served as President for three years and Vice President for one year. He worked with Jodie Butler who founded the “Meals of Honor” program, which feeds homeless veterans, to make it a part of the Greek Fraternity “AHEPA” in 2013. During his tenure with AHEPA Dodge earned the District One Chapter President of the Year Award, the District One Distinguished Service Award, the Chapter 296 Community Service Award, the Service to Chapter Award, the Leadership in Church Award, and the Lifetime Marital Devotion Award. He is also a founding member and fifth year President of the “AHEPA Pensacola Charitable Foundation, Inc.”
Dodge is also an active member of the prestigious “Thunderbird Honor Guard” based in Fort Walton Beach, FL. This Native American Honor Guard presents and retires “Colors” at special public events.
Dodge entered the University of West Florida in 2003 to earn his third Masters Degree. During his tenure he wrote, promoted, directed and performed in his first (and very successful) play “Native American Heritage Theater,” organized a two day “Native American Festival” which was the largest festival of it’s kind ever accomplished on the University of West Florida Campus, and established the university recognized student organization, “First Nations Intertribal Student Organization of UWF.”
In 2004, he organized the first of many Mission Trips to Native American Reservations. The first of these trips was to the Rosebud Lakota Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. Dodge earned the “University Of West Florida Presidents Leadership in Diversity Award” upon graduation with an MA degree. It is worthy of note that there is only one of these honors presented per year. Also the festival he created at UWF continues to be part of the annual “Festival On The Green” tradition at this University. He also has aided Mayan Indian People of Guatemala with school supplies and delivered clothing to the poor of Honduras. A book written by Robert and Billie Nicholson, The Cheyenne Sisters Mission, details one of his trips.
Dodge is currently the “Veteran’s Service Officer,” the “Veteran’s Day Parade Director,” and the director of the “Corpsman Unit” with the Corporal J.R. Spears Detachment #066 of the Marine Corps League of Pensacola, Florida, beginning 2015.