CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
The 437th Mission Support Group welcomed a new commander during a change of command ceremony here July 15 in Nose Dock 2.
Col. Benjamin Wham, former director of installations support for the Combined Air Operations Center replaced Col. Frank Jones as the commander.
Colonel Wham was born in Pelham, Ala., and raised in Auburn, Ala. It was after he heard about the four year scholarship the Air Force was offering which got him interested in joining the service.
"At the time I thought it would be cool for the Air Force to pay for my education and see what it has to offer," said Colonel Wham. "After the first couple of days in the Air Force I thought this lifestyle was not too bad. The more I got into it, the more I enjoyed the culture and people I worked with."
He attended The Citadel, located here in Charleston, S.C., where he earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1986.
"While at school I was really big in the ROTC side of things and engineering," Colonel Wham said. "I was an engineer though, so I didn't have a lot of time for anything else."
Along with a degree in civil engineering, Colonel Wham earned a Master of Arts Degree in Astronautical Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio.
When taking a break from furthering his education, Colonel Wham enjoys reading books and watching movies. The colonel's favorite movies include Saving Private Ryan and Independence Day.
"I love the speech from the president at the end before they attack the aliens," Colonel Wham said.
As for the colonel's favorite author, he said it was Steven Ambrose, the author of the novels including D-Day, Citizen Soldiers and Band of Brothers.
Throughout his career he has had many memorable assignments from all parts of the world, some including while being deployed.
"My most memorable assignment was when I was commander with the 407th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron at Tallil Air Base in Southern Iraq," he said. "I really enjoyed just being out in the war zone commanding folks who really wanted to be there and enjoyed what they did. It was 120 degrees and members were just jobbing it big time. We had a good group and it was a lot of fun."
Now he is leading the 437 MSG, his goal "is to take care of the missions, take care of the Airmen and take care of the Airmen's families," he said. "To me that is not only our goal, but our mission. We are mission support and that is the way we do business."
Accompanying Colonel Wham to Charleston AFB is his wife Ellen and his two daughters.
"It's feels great to be back at Charleston," the colonel said. "It is such a great location. The community is really friendly and the people have a lot of pride about where they work. Now that I am back in Charleston, I want to contribute to the team and also contribute my experiences in the area of responsibility to Airmen who are preparing to head down range and go do our nation's business of war."