Michael Colbert is a Meteorologist at the National Weather Service forecast office in State College, PA at NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. Colleagues describe him as "Mike is the definition of a professional meteorologist. Respectful and hardworking are just a few words to describe Michael's work ethic. I met Mike while we both volunteered for Stony Brook's Emergency Response Team and I was immediately impressed. A week before our semi-annual full scale exercise, Michael warned us of a potentially massive storm that could affect the region and require emergency response efforts. We would all come to call this storm Superstorm Sandy. Michael's heed and wisdom is always critical when forecasting for Emergency Management professionals like myself. There is always a stellar assessment of any risk to the tri-state area when speaking to Michael. I can firmly say that Mike always delivers timely and accurate assessments of weather while specifically taking into account risk factors that others may not have considered. When a forecast is on the horizon, colleagues, old friends, and even my mother, ask "what does Mike say about this" because everybody has confidence in his forecasting abilities. Michael would be an asset to any team due to his technical skills and hard working personality."