Our dear colleague and friend, Thomas Bartee, passed away on March 19th, 2024. Tom was a remarkable husband, father, and team member and was always available for colleagues and teammates. Whether it was catching a baseball game at Wrigley Field, or playing spades in Romania, to epic cornhole games until 2 am, or even arguing about how good the Cowboys would be that year, Tom was always loveable and a genuine kind soul.

Tom dedicated his life to serving our nation and the US Navy. He always looked professional to the hilt and was revered and loved by so many in the RMC and NSF community. Tom had an extensive career and made impactful contributions in the fields of law enforcement, physical security, and anti-terrorism across military and naval organizations. Tom was a Mission Assurance pioneer as a Navy NCIS investigator and continued his service to the Navy and Marine Corps after his retirement at RMC as a core member of our Mission Assurance and MCI teams. He was instrumental in the growth of RMC in 2015 as we expanded our assessment process from the USMC to add Naval Installations worldwide. As an active duty NCIS Agent, Tom became a believer in our risk-based processes and encouraged the Navy to adopt RMC’s methodologies. His efforts and relationships were critical to the rapid implementation of the tailored Navy Mission Assurance Assessment.

Tom was exceptional at showing others he cared and a relationship builder, and his superpower was his ability to connect with people. He simply had a way of taking over the room when he spoke. We will miss Tom dearly, and he leaves with us wonderful memories of our time spent with him sharing stories and getting to know one another. In today’s rapidly moving and technology-first world, Tom reminds us that the most important thing we can do each day is connect with, and support, each other.