"Petty Officer Madson's outstanding contributions at Detachment North Island have had an immense impact on SERE training and the staff," said Pegher. "He has distinguished himself through superior performance, personal devotion, and documented success. His accomplishments are truly extraordinary, and he most deserves to be our Junior Sailor of the Year."

Madson, a native of Mesa, Arizona, enlisted in the United States Navy in 2013. Upon graduating basic training at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Illinois, he attended basic medical and behavioral health training in Fort Sam Huston, Texas.

His first tour of duty was at the naval hospital in Pensacola, Florida, where he served as a behavioral health technician and a leading petty officer from 2013 to 2016. He was meritoriously promoted to the rank of E-5 at the end of his tour.

"It is a huge honor to be selected as the Junior Sailor of the Year for CENSECFOR, one that I don't take lightly," said Madson. "This is extremely gratifying to me in that I was able to accomplish a goal I set for myself. Hearing the news [of being selected] left me speechless."

Madson's current assignment is with the CENSECFOR Detachment North Island in Southern California. There he serves as a Navy instructor and as a Joint Personnel and Recovery Agency certified behavioral health technician. He is a subject matter expert and certified master training specialist providing risk management to high-risk training for the Navy’s Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) course.

SERE is a 12-day Code of Conduct course that trains Sailors, whose duties identify them as high-risk for capture, the skills necessary to survive and evade capture, to resist exploitation if captured, to escape if possible, and to return home with honor.

"I take a lot of pride in asking questions," said Madson when asked what advice he would offer to his fellow Sailors seeking to be a sailor of the year. "I ask my peers and leadership continuously about where my strengths lie and where I may need improvement. Once you recognize that, you can focus on strengthening those areas to make you well-rounded."

Harris added that Sailors should continue to use their strengths, do what they are good at, and focus on one or two weak skills they need to strengthen to improve their overall competitiveness.

"My wife has been my rock for 10-years," said Madson when asked about whom he would like to thank for contributing to his career. "She comes from a family of public servants, so she understands the requirements and resiliency it takes to succeed in our career field. She challenges me to continue doing great things and never settle."

Harris complimented his current leadership and peers at CENSECFOR Detachment North Island for being supportive, a team dynamic he says makes him more determined to work even harder for the team.

"I recently graduated with a bachelor's degree, so I plan on pursuing officer candidate school," said Madson about his next major career milestone. "I also hope to see my name on the E6 advancement results in a few weeks."

The Center for Security Forces provides specialized training to more than 23,000 students per year. It has 14 training locations across the United States and worldwide that carry the motto: "Where Training Breeds Confidence."