Specialist Zion Comesario is this year's winner of the annual Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber of Commerce John H. Anderson Military Citizen of the Year Award.

"I am honored to receive this recognition," he said during his acceptance remarks.

Born and raised in Kailua Kona, Hawaii, he joined the Army in October 2016.  

Comesario plans on making a career of his military service. "I am grateful be able to make others happy and help my fellow soldiers push forward with their lives and careers," he added.

Sponsored by America's Credit Union (ACU), the award was presented during a Veterans Day program hosted by Tacoma Rotary Club #8 at the Tacoma Yacht Club last Thursday.

The 40th year of the award, it is named in honor of Anderson, a military veteran who served as Tacoma's mayor in the early to mid-1950s.

For Comesario, the recognition is an extension of his Aloha Pride and his emphasis on the importance of the Hawaiian traditional belief in Ohana, or family.

Assigned to the 51st Expeditionary Signal Battalion at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Comesario is the unit's representative to the Better Opportunity for Single Soldiers (BOSS) program.

"The BOSS representatives and I work hard to ensure that our single soldiers are informed of the many opportunities that the program has to offer," he said.

"We are here to motivate, bring success, serve others, and to open their eyes to greater opportunities for happiness and the achievement of their goals."