2022 Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients

Salvadore F. Carbajal was born March 23rd, 1990, in Woodstock, IL. After graduating Woodstock high school Gunnery Sergeant Carbajal enlisted in the Marine Corps and began recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, CA on August 12, 2008.

Upon the completion of recruit training in November 2008, Private Carbajal reported to Marine Combat Training (West), at Camp Pendleton, CA. Private Carbajal completed Marine Combat Training in December 2009, before reporting to Marine Corps Communications Electronics School at Twentynine Palms, California. Private Carbajal completed Field Radio Operators course earning the MOS of Field Radio Operator (0621). Private Carbajal was assigned to Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 10th Marines at Camp Lejeune, NC from March 2009 to March 2012 as a Field Radio Operator where he was assigned Temporary Additional Duty orders and served on two combat deployments. He first deployed with Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines to Musa Qala, Afghanistan from February 2009 to October 2009.

He was promoted to Private First Class in October 2009 and Lance Corporal June 2010. He then Deployed with Bravo Company 1st Battalion, 9th Marines to Trek Nawa, Afghanistan from March 2011 to October 2011. He was promoted to the rank of Corporal in July of 2011. Corporal Carbajal reported to Headquarters and Support Company (H&S Co), 2nd Intelligence Battalion at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina March 2012 to February 2015 as a Field Radio Operator. While serving with H&S Co, 2nd Intelligence Battalion Corporal Carbajal received Temporary Additional Duty orders where he deployed as the Field Radio Operator for the Counterintelligence/Human Intelligence Team attached to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines aboard Camp Dwyer in Helmand Providence Afghanistan.

He was promoted to the rank of Sergeant in October 2012. In February of 2015 Sergeant Carbajal reported to Headquarters and Support Company (H&S Co), 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines where he served as a Radio Supervisor and Platoon Sergeant. As a Platoon Sergeant he deployed on the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit as part of the Battalion Landing Team from June 2016 to November 2016. In March 2017, Sergeant Carbajal reported to Marine Wing Communications Squadron 18 in Okinawa Japan. Immediately upon arrival, Sergeant Carbajal was selected to serve as the Company Gunnery Sergeant for Detachment Alpha.

He was promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant on October 2017. Upon his promotion he was assigned back to Radio Platoon as the Radio Chief. Staff Sergeant Carbajal was assigned orders to Basic Recruiters School for Jan 2019. Upon completion of Basic Recruiter School Staff Sergeant Carbajal was assigned to Recruiting Sub-Station McHenry (RSS MC), Recruiting Station Chicago in March of 2019. Staff Sergeant Carbajal served as a production recruiter and Staff Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge of RSS McHenry.

He was promoted to the rank of Gunnery Sergeant in May of 2021. Gunnery Sergeant Carbajal received orders and checked into 1st Reconnaissance Battalion in Camp Pendleton, California on July 1st, 2022. He is currently serving as the Communications Chief for Force Reconnaissance Company. Gunnery Sergeant Carbajal personnel awards include a Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Good Conduct Medal and various other Service and Campaign medals. Gunnery Sergeant Carbajal has two children, Arianna and Leandro.

Brad Corson is a third-generation graduate of Woodstock High School. He and his wife Joan have two sons, Nicholas and William. They currently split their time between Calgary, Canada and Houston, Texas but regularly visit Woodstock as many family members still live in the area.

Throughout his nearly four-decade career in the oil and gas industry, he has been dedicated to advancing global energy supply and societal benefits, while also leveraging his professional accomplishments and network to impact the next generation of engineers and leaders in the industry. Brad is currently the chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Imperial Oil Limited, Canada’s largest petroleum refiner, a major producer of crude oil and natural gas, a key petrochemical producer, and a leading fuels marketer from coast to coast.

Brad earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Auburn University in 1983, joining Exxon Company, now ExxonMobil, as a project engineer after graduation. He has held a wide variety of technical, commercial and managerial assignments. He spent the first 21 years of his career based in the United States with assignments in Louisiana, California, Texas, and Virginia before relocating overseas.

In 2004, Brad moved to Hong Kong as manager of Hong Kong Power and chairman of CAPCO, ExxonMobil’s Joint Venture in the power industry. In 2007, he returned to Houston, Texas, as vice-president of New Business Development for ExxonMobil Gas and Power Marketing Company with global responsibility for commercializing ExxonMobil’s major gas resources and pursuit of new opportunities.

From 2009 to 2014, he was based in London as chairman and production director of ExxonMobil International Limited, where he had responsibility for ExxonMobil’s oil and gas production activities in Europe and Caspian regions. He also served as ExxonMobil’s lead country manager for the United Kingdom during this period.

In 2014, Brad returned to Houston as vice-president of ExxonMobil Upstream Ventures and in 2015 was appointed president of ExxonMobil Upstream Ventures and a vice-president of Exxon Mobil Corporation, where he oversaw the company’s global upstream acquisition and divestment programs, including major strategic acquisitions in the Permian Basin, Papua New Guinea, Mozambique, and Brazil. He assumed his current role at Imperial Oil Limited, a publicly traded company with ExxonMobil as majority shareholder, in 2020.|

Brad is an avid supporter of Auburn University, where he serves on advisory councils for the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering as well as the Department of Chemical Engineering. He is a recipient of the Outstanding Alumni Award from the Department of Chemical Engineering and was recently named the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering Distinguished Engineer. Earlier this year he was inducted into the Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame. In addition, Brad serves on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers and the C.D. Howe Institute; as well as serving on the Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America – Sam Houston Area Council, and as Governing Director for the Houston Symphony.

Nancy Swartout Lawson graduated from Woodstock High School in 1974. She then attended Illinois State University and graduated in 1978 with a B.S. in Education. Following that, Nancy attended graduate school at Northern Illinois University.

Nancy held a number of teaching positions before marrying her husband Bernie and moving to Elizabeth, Illinois. The Lawsons have five children, Aaron, Kendra, Sarah, Ethan and Rachel. Nancy and Bernie also became foster parents and she worked as a director/teacher of a preschool.

In 2000, they moved to Geneseo, Illinois and Nancy started working for the Department of Defense at the Rock Island Arsenal. She served as a Program Director for the Child and Youth Services department for almost twenty years and was honored with the Pioneer Award for innovative initiatives that benefitted military families with children. She was also awarded the Army Stalwart Award at the Garrison Commanders conference. According to its definition, this award recognizes “outstanding accomplishments and inspirational examples of Installation Management employees who perform in an exemplary manner, set standards for change in Installation Management and contribute significantly to carrying out the mission.”

Nancy recently retired and is enjoying doing volunteer work for a local animal rehab, the county animal shelter, and as an emergency vehicle driver for the American Red Cross, as well as church-related service. Nancy states, "I am forever thankful for being born and raised in Woodstock by two amazing parents, Bud and Joann Swartout. I have so many great memories of my time at WHS and the awesome faculty and friends I was so lucky to have known."