CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Happy Halloween! Please enjoy the "Trick or Treaters" out roaming our streets tonight -- and while our neighborhoods are prowled by the annual parade of ghouls and goblins, please take extra precautions while driving. Halloween bags with glow sticks are available at the Lambs Elementary School gate and the Hunley Park Elementary School gate from 2:20 to 3 p.m. and at the Child Development Center and Youth Center from 3:30 to 5 p.m. The evening's festivities are authorized to begin at 6 p.m. and end at 9 p.m. "Pumpkin Patrols" will be out to insure all have a safe and trouble-free Halloween. All Team Charleston members are tasked with the safety of our young "Trick or Treaters."
Another yearly event, the Combined Federal Campaign, is rapidly coming to a close ending on Nov. 12. Edward Abbey wrote, "Sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul." If you have planned on contributing this year, the time to do so is drawing near. The Coastal Carolina 2008 Charity List booklet and donation form are available, please take the time to review it and make your donations to one or more of the many noteworthy charities available. Economic worries hits charities especially hard as sorely needed contributions dwindle. If you have ever wanted to save a life or make a difference in the world, now is your chance. Our goal remains 100% contact with all Team Charleston personnel. Make it personal...make the choice to change a life!
Change is a current that runs throughout history, and history unfolds every day. Change usually comes from the need to fix a broken process or to improve something already in existence. In seeking to improve the way the Department of Defense does business the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) law of 2005 mandates the creation of 12 Joint Bases; one of those is Joint Base Charleston. By combining Charleston AFB and the Naval Weapons Station to form Joint Base Charleston, we believe a new and more efficient way of doing business will emerge. Many members of the Air Force Base and the Naval Weapons Station are working to make the transition a success. We are working to achieve full implementation by October 2010.
Speaking of change ... our nation is getting ready to vote a new president into office. As we have seen in several very close elections in the recent past, every single vote counts. We have dedicated our professional lives to defending America's freedom. Voting is our opportunity to be heard and to influence our future. Please keep that in mind as we approach Nov. 4.
On a final note, please join me in welcoming Team Charleston's newest Honorary Commanders! On Oct. 29, Charleston AFB inducted 36 community leaders from the local area into our Honorary Commander Program ... a program designed to educate the local business community about Charleston AFB and the larger U.S. Air Force role as well as build a foundation for supportive relationships between the base and local community. Reach out to these men and women, and show them what it means to be part of this "Team Charleston Family!"
We are ... Team Charleston. Take the Fight to the Enemy!