CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Uh oh, another article about core values, right? Well hold on, not so fast. What if we didn't discuss all three but instead, focused on just one? The one I'd like to talk about is service before self. When I think about service before self, I often relate it to someone paying the ultimate price, a heroic act in enemy territory or perhaps a fight or flight act in a moment of uncertainty.
While these are all good examples of service before self, there's a simpler one we sometimes overlook. This act alone separates us from most of our civilian counterparts in mainstream America.
Last week I experienced firsthand what service before self was all about from three of Team Charleston's finest Airmen. These Airmen epitomized this core value and made me proud to be on the same team with each of them. The opportunity I'm referring to involved a very speedy, yet thorough separation action for one of my Airmen whose service enlistment was terminating.
When most of us move to a new station, separate or retire, we normally have a few months to accomplish our out processing appointments. Other circumstances however, prevented this Airman from taking advantage of the same amount of time. As it turns out, this Airman separated from the Air force in one day; not alone mind you, but with the professional assistance, positive attitude and, of course, service before self trait demonstrated by each servicing agency.
Airman 1st Class Geral Gatlin from the Traffic Management Office, Staff Sgt. Laprecia Williams from Finance, and Staff Sgt. Anique McElveen from the Military Personnel Flight were simply amazing. Each of these professionals greeted my Airman with a hand shake and a smile, went over every entitlement, contact numbers and addresses, answered every question my Airman asked and finished up with another handshake and a parting smile. Each of these Charleston Airmen left work that night around 7 p.m. Here's what was compromised; night school, family time, dinner and one mother had to make extended day care arrangements for her daughter because she had to work late that evening.
Think their personal lives weren't impacted that day, sacrifices made, and service before self demonstrated? While some days are definitely longer than others, and the determination deeper, military service is probably best described by former Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Eric W. Benken as an uncommon profession that calls for people with an enduring commitment and dedication to the mission. It requires us to have a sense to service before self. Each member must realize his or her needs are secondary to the needs of our great country. This is a 24-hour-a-day commitment and one that requires many personal sacrifices. Personal goals are important and often coincide with Air Force goals. However, there is no room for personal agendas that interfere with the needs of the Air Force or the interests of our government.
Even though I only talked about one core value, all three are equally important in our professional Air Force culture. In fact, the Air Force has established a core values Web site at http://www.usafa.af.mil/core-value/index.html. I challenge everyone to log on and view a series of readings about the core values ... really.