Upon hearing about being named Air Mobility Command's Outstanding Civil Engineer Air Reserve Component NCO manager of the year, Master Sgt. Glen Tuttle's thoughts immediately turned to the accompanying award banquet this week at Scott Air Force Base, Ill.

An airman who spent several deployments in war zones searching for improvised explosive devices as part of the 446th Civil Engineering Squadron's explosive ordinance disposal unit, Tuttle was taken aback by the image of standing at the podium after accepting the award.

"They want me to talk about myself ... I don't," he said.

Tuttle, who works in the same shop for the 627th Civil Engineering Squadron (the active duty unit) as the civilian logistics manager during the weekdays, simply goes about his duties making sure operations within the joint building go smoothly and airmen get everything they need to perform their mission.

Despite his humility, leadership in Tuttle's unit saw his dedication to ironing out all the details and changes that came along with joint basing, which included serving as the flight chief and NCO in charge for seven months.

"He was stellar in providing leadership, continuity and mentorship during his stand in and supporting the Afghanistan surge efforts," squadron officials wrote in his award submission.

"I didn't know I was submitted for (the award)," he said. "I was totally unaware."

But the 40-year-old's dedication to the mission is evident.

After serving on active duty for 12 years, Tuttle wanted to stay close to the EOD career field because he liked so much of what he saw with the younger generation coming through the ranks. So he joined the reserves seven years ago.

His last yearlong deployment to Afghanistan, where he was paired with a Marine unit, hit home the fact why he stayed in the Air Force even more.

"I saw a critical need for people with our skill set ... (EOD is) a fairly young career field," said Tuttle, who was born in Nashua, N.H. but spent most of his childhood living in Florida. "It's neat being able to help mold (young airmen's) direction in their career path. We're here to facilitate their career procession."

He really enjoys seeing the new ideas young airmen bring to the career field.

"Seeing that outside-the-box thinking and the interaction it creates between everybody is great," Tuttle said.

And those opportunities to share any tricks of the trade or offer advice are there often for Tuttle, as he works as both a reservist and a civilian in the same office.

"It provides good continuity between the flights and facilitates esprit des corps between the reserve and active duty side," he said.

While Tuttle is grateful for the award and acknowledgement that comes with it, he still feels he can't take all the credit.

"Without the other people involved I wouldn't have accomplished what I did," he said. "You're only as good as the people working for you or with you."