He was raised in Del City, OK where he graduated high school in 1987, and went on to be a member of the last University of Oklahoma football team to win a Big 8 championship title in 1987. He was inducted into the Del City High School Hall of Fame in 2013 for career achievements from his active duty service in the United States Air Force. Additionally, he received the Distinguished Alumni award fr
om Rose State College in 2014 and has been an avid supporter of the Rose State Alumni Association. Putnam retired from service in the United States Air Force where he finished his career as the Director of Strategic Initiatives leading a 15,000-member virtual organization covering three states in developing policy and business processes to standardize intellectual property management operations. Putnam began his Air Force career in May 1998 at the Space and Missile Center in Los Angeles, CA. He served in various positions during his career including a role in the Air Force Office of Special Investigations where he spearheaded operational support of a $171M fraud case and ensured a $138M recovery, advised in fraud investigations world-wide, and trained several generations of federal agents. He also served at the National Reconnaissance Office where he directed cradle-to-grave management of more than $189M in space and information technology contracts, and led multi-site operations directing units managing government property worth $5.1B. Putnam's worldwide experience includes deployments to Pakistan where he was involved in political-military affairs at the United States Embassy; to Iraq where he was responsible for providing life support to over 20,000 personnel at 7 bases; and to Afghanistan where he led military, civilian, and Afghan personnel supporting over 40 bases covering 30,000 square miles of battle space. He came under direct and indirect fire multiple times (receiving the Bronze Star Medal for actions under fire), managed a portfolio worth $200M to enhance humanitarian and reconstruction operations, and developed business ties between Central Asian states fostering international trade relations.
