America Makes Honours 2025 Ambassador and Collaborator Awardees!
By Ashutosh Arora
America Makes, the national accelerator for additive manufacturing based in Youngstown, Ohio, has announced the recipients of its 2025 Ambassador Awards and Distinguished Collaborator Award during its annual Members Meeting and Exchange (MMX) event. The recognition highlights individuals whose dedication and leadership continue to shape the additive manufacturing community in the United States and beyond.
John Wilczynski, Executive Director of America Makes, emphasized the importance of the organization’s member-driven model and praised this year’s honourees. “We are honoured to have a passionate and powerful membership base that proactively leads efforts across their industries and beyond that boosts our efforts as an Institute,” he said. “Today, we sit at a critical juncture within America Makes. By reinforcing and expanding our effective collaboration model, the dedicated efforts of our supporters are essential to strengthening the U.S. industrial base and igniting the next wave of technological breakthroughs in additive manufacturing.”
The Ambassador Award Program was launched in 2017 to recognize individuals who consistently demonstrate commitment to advancing the institute’s mission. This year’s recipients represent a wide cross-section of the additive manufacturing ecosystem, from aerospace to space exploration to entrepreneurial innovation. The 2025 honourees include David Beck, former Branch Chief for Space Industrial Base and Supply Chain at the U.S. Space Force; Stacey Eeman, Director of Industry Strategy at SME; Thomas Pomorski, Director of Additive Manufacturing at Ursa Major; Mark Shaw, Chief Engineer at the National Institute for Aviation Research; Samantha Snabes, co-founder and catalyst at re:3D; Andrew Thompson, Manager and Deputy Chief Engineer of Additive Manufacturing at Northrop Grumman; and Rich Wetzel, President of The Lanterman Group.
According to America Makes, these individuals embody the collaborative spirit and technical leadership required to move additive manufacturing forward. Their efforts have contributed to advancing industrial base expansion, workforce development, and the adoption of additive technology across critical sectors. “The 2025 class embodies a cross-section of the industry whose efforts have significantly shaped additive technology and showcase the strength of the AM community,” the institute noted.
In addition to the Ambassador Awards, America Makes presented the Distinguished Collaborator Award, established in 2014 to recognize individuals who cultivate lasting partnerships across academia, government, and industry. The 2025 recipient was Adele Ratcliff, retired Director of the Innovation Capability and Modernization (ICAM) Office. Over nearly three decades of service, Ratcliff played a pivotal role in strengthening the agility and readiness of the U.S. Defense Industrial Base. Through the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment (IBAS) Program, she worked to reinforce traditional technical capabilities while also fostering emerging industrial sectors, ensuring that the defense supply chain could meet evolving national security challenges.
In her acceptance speech, Ratcliff highlighted the urgency of advancing additive manufacturing for defense applications. “While Additive Manufacturing has become ubiquitous, we still face the challenge of qualifying parts at pace; the adversaries do not pause their efforts, neither can we,” she said. She stressed the importance of enabling manufacturing in austere environments with unstable infrastructure while maintaining the quality and reliability demanded by critical defense systems.
Reflecting on her career, Ratcliff expressed gratitude to her colleagues and to America Makes. “It has been an honour to serve alongside you all, to be inspired daily by people who choose to show up and make a difference in manufacturing, a commitment that underpins our national security,” she said. As she transitions from government service, Ratcliff noted that she remains confident in the next generation of innovators and disruptors who will continue pushing the boundaries of what is possible.
The recognition of the 2025 Ambassador and Collaborator Award recipients underscores the critical role of collaboration, innovation, and leadership in strengthening the U.S. industrial base and ensuring the nation remains at the forefront of additive manufacturing advancements.
