2026 Honorary Awards Recipients
Major General Gary W. Keefe
Recipient of the Brigadier General Enoch “Woody” Woodhouse II Leadership Award
Maj. Gen. Gary W. Keefe serves as The Adjutant General of the Massachusetts National Guard, where he oversees the strategic direction, administration, and readiness of more than 9,000 Soldiers, Airmen, and civilian personnel. Responsible for an annual budget of $450 million, he ensures over 9,000 members of the Massachusetts National Guard are fully trained, equipped, and prepared to support national security missions abroad and to protect life and property during emergencies at home.
Commissioned in 1986 through the ROTC program at Norwich University, General Keefe began his career as a Ground Launched Cruise Missile Launch Officer in Belgium and later served as a Peacekeeper ICBM Combat Crew Flight Commander and Evaluator in Wyoming. Since joining the Massachusetts Air National Guard in 1992, he has held key leadership roles including Logistics Group Commander, Maintenance Group Commander, Mission Support Group Commander, and Director of Manpower, Personnel and Human Resources.
General Keefe has commanded forces during multiple major operations. In 1999, he led the Expeditionary Logistics Group during Operation Allied Force in Italy, overseeing 420 personnel across active duty, Guard, and Reserve units. In 2003, he commanded more than 800 U.S. Central Command personnel during Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, directing all aircraft maintenance and logistics for A/OA‑10 and Predator missions throughout the air campaign.
Prior to his current role, he served as Director of Staff for the Massachusetts Air National Guard, Vice Chief of the Joint Staff, Assistant Adjutant General - Air, and Commander of the Massachusetts Air National Guard. His career reflects decades of operational excellence, strategic leadership, and unwavering commitment to the Commonwealth and the nation.
Maj. Gen. Gary W. Keefe is honored by Hanscom Federal Credit Union and its Charitable Foundation for his distinguished service and exemplary leadership as Adjutant General of the Massachusetts National Guard. His unwavering commitment to the Commonwealth, the nation, and the service members under his command has strengthened military readiness, advanced emergency response capabilities, and supported veterans and their families across Massachusetts. This award recognizes his dedication to service and the lasting impact he has made on the military community.
Colonel Cheryl Lussier Poppe, U.S. Army (Ret.)
Recipient of the Minuteman Award
Cheryl Lussier Poppe has dedicated her life to service; first in uniform, then as one of Massachusetts’ most influential champions for veterans. A Rhode Island native who commissioned through the University of Rhode Island ROTC, Cheryl launched a distinguished 30 year career in the Massachusetts National Guard. During her military service, she attended the Army Command and General Staff College, the Reserve Component National Security Course in Washington, D.C., and earned her MBA from Salem State University.
As a Personnel Officer, she discovered her calling: supporting Soldiers and their families. She rose through key staff and command roles to become Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, guiding mobilization readiness during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and helping launch the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program. She also advanced opportunities for women service members, increasing the number of Guardswomen joining the Department of Veterans Services Women Veterans Network.
After retiring from the military, Cheryl began a second chapter of public service with the Massachusetts Department of Veterans Services, ultimately serving as Secretary. Her leadership strengthened the Women Veterans Network, expanded community partnerships, modernized State Veterans Homes, and helped bring the new Chelsea Community Living Center, which provides 154 homelike living spaces for veterans, to life. She also contributed to the early planning of the new Holyoke Veterans Home and the vision for the future Chelsea Domiciliary campus for Veterans’ preference housing.
Most recently, Cheryl served as Senior Advisor for Veteran‑Owned Business Development at the Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office, where she increased veteran participation in state contracting and chaired the Holyoke Veterans Home Reconstruction Access Inclusion and Diversity Committee, ensuring veterans had a meaningful role in the project’s workforce and enterprise opportunities. She continues to stay engaged and actively supports her alumni associations at URI and Salem State, several Veterans Service Organizations and Committees, Chelsea Rotary, Richelieu Club of Salem, and most recently, the Hanscom Federal Credit Union Veterans Advisory Council. Cheryl continues her advocacy and support for service members, veterans, and their families.
Hanscom Federal Credit Union and its Charitable Foundation is proud to present the Minuteman Award in recognition of Cheryl’s lifelong commitment to service and her unwavering support for those who have served.
James T. Brett
Recipient of the Inaugural James T. Brett Community Service Award
James T. Brett is the President and Chief Executive Officer of The New England Council, the nation’s oldest regional business association. Since his appointment in 1996, he has transformed the Council into New England’s premier business advocacy organization, expanding its membership tenfold and strengthening its influence on federal policy across energy, healthcare, education and workforce development, financial services, technology, transportation, and more.
Before leading the Council, Mr. Brett served 15 years in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, chairing several of the legislature’s most influential committees and championing policies that supported job creation, workforce development, and economic growth.
A lifelong advocate for people with disabilities, Mr. Brett has been appointed by four U.S. Presidents to national disability policy roles, including multiple terms as Chairman of the President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities. He also served as Vice Chairman of the National Council on Disability and currently chairs both the Governor’s Commission on Intellectual Disability and the Massachusetts Disabled Persons Protection Commission. His leadership inspired the establishment of the James T. Brett Chair in Disability and Workforce Development at UMass Boston, the first of its kind in the nation, and the creation of “Brett House,” a community home for adults with disabilities.
Mr. Brett played a key role in advancing the federal ABLE Act, which created tax‑advantaged savings plans for individuals with disabilities and their families. He also serves as Board President of the Mary Ann Brett Food Pantry, named in memory of his mother and based at Saint Margaret Church of Saint Teresa of Calcutta Parish in his hometown of Dorchester.
His contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including lifetime achievement awards from the American Academy of Developmental Medicine and Dentistry and the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, as well as induction into multiple halls of fame. He has been named repeatedly to the Boston Business Journal’s list of the “50 Most Influential Bostonians” and holds degrees from American University, Suffolk University, and Harvard University, as well as 19 honorary degrees from colleges and universities across New England.
It is with the highest respect and distinction that Hanscom Federal Credit Union and its Charitable Foundation presents the inaugural James T. Brett Community Service Award, permanently named in his honor. This award was established to recognize individuals or organizations whose extraordinary service strengthens communities and advances the public good. Mr. Brett’s lifelong dedication, leadership, and moral commitment stand as a compelling example of those ideals.
