Arlington, VA, Sept. 19, 1997 -- The Air Force Association presented its prestigious Member of the Year Award to James M. McCoy, a former Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force (CMSAF) and a former AFA President and Chairman of the Board.

McCoy, who lives in Bellevue, NE, currently serves as the Chairman of the Air Force Retiree Council, the first retired enlisted member to hold this position. McCoy accepted the award during AFA's National Convention and Aerospace Technology Exposition, held in Washington, D.C., September 15-17.

McCoy, who served as the sixth Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, from 1979-1981, was honored for his tireless dedication to his country and to the national, state and local AFA organizations. Joining AFA in 1974, he has served in numerous volunteer leadership positions, culminating in his election as AFA's National President in 1992. After two one-year terms, he became the association's Chairman of the Board in 1994 and served for two terms.

He has also served on AFA's Resolutions, Executive and Membership Committees; as President, Executive Vice President and Membership Chairman of the AK-SAR-BEN Chapter, Omaha, NE; as Chairman of AFA's Long-Range Planning Committee and Ad-Hoc, Active-Duty Voting Privileges Committee; and as a member of the Aerospace Education Foundation (AEF) Board of Trustees. Previously, he served as National Vice President for the Midwest Region, Chairman of the Membership Committee and is a permanent member of the National Board of Directors.

McCoy was born in Creston, Iowa. After graduating from Maur Hill High School in Atchison, KS, and attending St. Ambrose College in Davenport, IA, he enlisted in the Air Force in January 1951, serving as a basic training instructor, non-commissioned officer (NCO) professional military education instructor and sergeant major at Strategic Air Command's 2nd Air Force NCO Academy. He graduated from that academy and the first class of the USAF Senior NCO Academy. In addition to serving in personnel, training and operations posts, McCoy was the first Strategic Air Command Senior Enlisted Advisor and the sixth Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Centenary College in Louisiana in 1966.

McCoy has received many AFA accolades including the organization's Presidential and Special Citations, the Hoyt S. Vandenberg Award and the Storz Individual Membership Award. He was honored by AFA in 1974 as one of the U.S. Air Force's twelve Outstanding Airmen of the Year. He is an AFA Life Member and a charter member of the Aerospace Education Foundation.

Active in many business and civic organizations, McCoy has served as a member of the Subcommittee on Military Matters, American Council of Life Insurance; Corporate Contributions Coordinating Council, Omaha Chamber of Commerce; Board of Directors, Omaha Zoological Society; Airmen Memorial Foundation; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Military Advisory Board; and with many national, regional and local boards of the Boy Scouts of America, including the National Eagle Scouts Scholarship Selection Committee. He also served as the Chairman of the Steering Committee to commission the USS Nebraska, the nation's newest Trident submarine.

After retiring from the Air Force, McCoy joined Mutual of Omaha and later became vice president and director of Military Sales until leaving the company in 1991.

In nominating Mc Coy for this award, his colleague noted, "while his awards are numerous, this one is past due."