CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Team Charleston, it is great to be "back home" in Charleston again!
Words don't adequately express how happy Deb, the kids and I are to be back at Charleston AFB among so many of our close friends. This is a wonderful community, civilian and military, and we look forward to another rewarding assignment in the Lowcountry. Thank you to everyone for making us feel so welcome and for working so hard on the change of command ceremony. I take a lot of pride in being your commander. I will share that pride with all our newest promotees at the wing promotion ceremony today ... congratulations on your big accomplishment!
I'm humbled by the thought of taking command of this magnificent organization ... Charleston AFB is the premier airlift wing in our country and a critical link in our military's lifeline. Our nation is at war ... 9/11 was a dramatic announcement that our enemy is determined and able to strike on our home turf. America doesn't like to fight home games -- we much prefer to fight in our enemy's front yard, not ours. It is our mission and unwavering responsibility to take this fight to our enemy.
We project combat power around the globe, but we have other missions too. Sometimes the enemy is hunger and human suffering, and our mission is to transport humanitarian relief. Sometimes the enemy is time; our unique transport capability is the only means for an injured hero or a sick family member to receive world-class medical care. Sometimes the enemy is a distraught family member or a lost child, and it's up to us to put things right.
The enemy can take many forms and, simply put, our mission is to "Take the Fight to the Enemy" -- and history has proven that Team Charleston is magnificent at accomplishing that mission.
Success of Team Charleston doesn't happen by accident. We rely on dedicated professionals to stand tall and deliver on the toughest jobs. Our nation has asked much of you in the past and you've come through flawlessly. You led the way from the early days of the B-17 "Flying Fortress" Bomber and the B-24 Liberator Bomber training during World War II to the first C-5 Galaxy flights here at Charleston. You led the way supporting warfighters in Vietnam and operations in Europe. During my first assignment here in the early 1990s, Charleston led the way flying C-141 Starlifter missions during Desert Storm and again with Brig. Gen. Mikolajcik leading humanitarian relief operations in Somalia. Charleston led the way again as the first home for the C-17 as the initial cadre worked hard to bring this magnificent aircraft online. Since then you've led the way in Bosnia, Kosovo, Rhino LZ, Iraq and numerous high-visibility, high-impact missions around the globe.
Since 9/11, our country has called again and again ... and you have answered that call every time. I don't have to tell you about all your recent accomplishments; the headlines say it all. Team Charleston makes history every day. I'm confident you will continue to extend the long arm of our nation's might by bringing aid to those in need and justice to those who would do us harm.
As your new wing commander, I will have three focus areas: family, mission and community. My pledge to you is straight forward: I will lead you from the front and be your #1 supporter. My job is to make sure you have the tools, resources and leadership you need to do your jobs. I will ask no more from any Airman that I am not willing to put forth myself, and I will expect nothing less in return.
I pledge to be honest and up front with you because my first focus is on our most important asset -- our magnificent professional people and their families. Cargo is neither self-loading nor self-delivering. It takes people to put the life in lift and it takes a tremendous amount of work to take the fight to our enemy. We fight and win as a team and no one should measure their worth by their proximity to a C-17 flight deck. Everyone contributes and everyone is important to our mission. You are truly the critical link in the mobility chain. People move the mission and absolutely nothing is more important to me.
Finally, I pledge to leave things better than I find them. I will dedicate myself to following the 18th Air Force commander, Maj. Gen. Hawkins' vision and continuing Col. Joerger's ongoing improvements to the mission, the joint bases and the strong community ties we already enjoy. I'm committed to building upon the world-class team that the Joergers have nurtured and developed for the last 19 months.
The Joergers put their heart and soul into this base and this community. Their contributions to Team Charleston will long be remembered. Deb and I are grateful to them for their friendship and leadership. We wish them good luck and Godspeed as they enter "life after the Air Force."
Deb and I look forward to working with each of you as we continue to provide world-class mobility support to our nation.
Now, we have work to do ... because as long our nation asks, Team Charleston will deliver.
Take the fight to the enemy!