CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Happy holidays Team Charleston. December represents five months that the Wham family has been a part of this great team and I can tell you we have enjoyed every single minute of it.
Last year this time, I was sitting in the Middle East as the Civil Engineer for the Air Force in that area of responsibility. I had a great team there, and we spent Christmas Day working out, serving food at the dining facility to our fellow Airmen and then watching movies and playing games in the conference room. While the separation from my family was very tough (after 23 years in the Air Force, it was the first Christmas I had not spent with my family), being with my A7 team still made it a good time.
This holiday season, not everyone will have time off. Many of our fellow Team Charleston members will be guarding the installation, manning the command post, preparing for the holiday meal at the dining facility, taking reservations at the billeting desk and manning the fire trucks to keep us safe from harm, just to name a few of the many activities that must continue.
Additionally, we have teammates deployed around the world executing or supporting active combat operations. In every case, we as team members need to let our teammates know we are there for them and appreciate them going the extra mile in support of our mission and our nation.
Now is also the time we, as a team, must be in our highest state of vigilance for ourselves and our teammates. During the holiday season there are many opportunities to have a great time and enjoy the company of others. This will include a little quality time with family and friends and may include a lot of holiday cheer and maybe a few adult beverages. It is part of the holidays and can be very enjoyable, provided the partiers are of age to drink and have a plan to get home safe and alive. However, too many times those plans are never made, resulting in deadly consequences.
Twenty years ago I was a first lieutenant assigned to the 401st Civil Engineering Squadron at Torrejon Air Base, Spain, a large F-16 base located about 20 miles outside of Madrid, Spain. It was a great assignment for a young married couple, filled with many great after-duty activities and a lot of good friends. However, during an 18-month period my squadron experienced three deaths as a result of squadron members drinking and driving.
The first was a young staff sergeant who was set to return to the U.S. in three days and decided to tie one on with buddies from his shop. His family had already departed for the U.S., and all that was left was to ship his brand new vehicle the next day. That fateful night, he went out to a local bar, had a number of drinks and then attempted to drive back to his quarters with three other Airmen. While negotiating an off-ramp, he lost control. He was ejected from the car because he was not wearing his seat belt. The car proceeded to roll on top of him, killing the sergeant and injuring the two others. As the summary court officer, I collected all his possessions, closed his debts and dealt directly with his anguished wife who could not fathom why he would have done that, knowing she would never see him again.
The second one was a retired lieutenant colonel who worked for me as a program engineer. A fixture around the base for more than 10 years, he was a great resource and mentor for everyone who worked with him. After work one day, he went out. He had a few drinks to celebrate the end of the work week and then headed home to his wife of more than 30 years. On the way home, he lost control of his car and ended up hitting another car head on at high speed. Like the previous accident, he did not have a seatbelt on, and he was ejected from the car and killed instantly. Unfortunately, he ran into a family of three Spaniards. All three of them died in the crash due to our Airman's failure.
The final accident involved an exceedingly popular and professional master sergeant in our operations flight. He attended the same holiday party I attended on a cool December evening where our entire unit had a wonderful time and paid tribute to the two individuals we had recently lost. While heading home to the off base housing area where we lived, he lost control negotiating a corner. Like the other two deaths, he was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected through the windshield when his car struck a ditch. Because he was intoxicated and unconscious, he ended up drowning in only five inches of water. Another avoidable loss and one more devastating blow to our already suffering unit.
Each of these three Airmen were dedicated members of our service and excelled at what they did in the execution of their mission. Unfortunately, each of these men made very poor decisions that ultimately cost them their lives and injured or killed others needlessly. These losses also devastated our unit and their families. They each share a very common theme, they were completely avoidable.
This year, and in the future, let's do what we can to learn the lessons of loss and avoid inflicting pain on our families, our units, our teammates and ourselves. As we celebrate the holidays and the end of another successful year, I ask that you make the right decisions to protect yourselves, your wingman and all your teammates and family members. Let's make this a truly happy and safe holiday season.