CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Commitment is an interesting word to me. You hear it in marriage, you hear it as an organization slogan and you hear it as a motivational tool on successful teams. I thought of the word this weekend as I was driving through our housing area at Hunley Park. I happened to see one of our Airmen walking slowly, but determined. I stopped and said hello to Tech. Sgt. Craig Carpenter from the 437th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. I had a great conversation with him and he talked about his unit and his friends, how he couldn't wait to get back and how proud he was of his unit's inspection results. I left understanding his commitment, the same commitment each of you has as volunteers in our armed services.
Leaving Hunley Park, I stopped and visited with Master Sgt. Stewart Shackleford, one of our elite homeland security members in the 437th Security Forces Squadron, and was impressed with his professionalism.
Many of you have noticed the repairs occurring on the flightline. For those that work on the ramp, it pays to have an airfield manager like Larry Gill with the 437th Operations Support Squadron, who ensures safe and efficient airfield operations, but also understands our North Auxiliary field and has the vision to keep it the premier training site it is.
The safe operation of our airfield and base would not be complete without Airmen like Staff Sgt. Stephanie Pyles from the 437th Civil Engineer Squadron, who currently works the fire control center for the fire department (911 calls, too). She will continue her commitment to excellence as a firefighter when she deploys soon to Afghanistan.
Carrying out a commitment to excellence is something that is encouraged by good leaders. I'm confident in our leaders such as 437 CES Deputy Fire Chief James Copeland, who gave me an impromptu tour of the fire department when I dropped in earlier this week. I also met 437 Airlift Wing Staff Sgt. Jared Calhoun from command post and watched him work through the many issues that affect our base at all hours. While flying one of our C-17s this past weekend, Capt. Justin Ginther from the 17th Airlift Squadron excelled leading his crew in airland operations.
I walked through several of our current expansion programs. We are very close to finishing the gym expansion, a greatly needed lift for fitness. 437th Airlift Wing Chap. (Lt. Col.) Michael Lovett was all smiles as he showed off the renovations occurring at our Base Chapel. I also visited the dorms and saw firsthand the results of Tech. Sgt. Maria Bare and Staff Sgt. Tisha Drayton-Brown from 437 CES.
As I continue to see more of our Airmen and civilians at Charleston, I marvel at the commitment it takes to make everything work. And I continue to see great support from the community and outreach from our wing, like 437th Operations Group Deputy Commander Col. Scott Shapiro and Staff Sgt. Robert Sizelove from the 437 AW public affairs office telling the story of Charleston AFB to community leaders in Summerville.
My favorite event this week was my meeting with our first sergeants. I say "our" first sergeants because they serve each of us. They hold our standards high and you won't find a group of leaders who care more about people than our shirts; it is very clear where their commitment is.
We had a safe Memorial Day weekend so keep looking out for each other and thank you for your service to our nation.