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Retired Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Sam E. Parish visited Ramstein Jan. 19 through 22 to pass on insight from his more than 30 years of active-duty Air Force service.
Although here mostly to talk with new chiefs and chief selects, Chief Parish also took time to speak to noncommissioned officers, the current Airman Leadership School class and those new to the Air Force.
“What I try to do is get some of our heritage into everything,” he said. “We have a proud heritage that goes back to the Army Air Corps.”
From the loss of the first enlisted member in aerial flight in 1912, Cpl. Frank Scott, to the first Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force, Paul Airey, “all of those things are part of our heritage, and we need to never forget we have it,” the eighth CMSAF said.
While speaking with the new chiefs and chief selects, he imparted to them that even though they are different because they are the top 1 percent of the Air Force, they are still an NCO “first, last and always.”
“They’ve reached the epitome of a chosen profession,” he said. “Not too many people can say they’ve done that; they can no longer compete in an environment for promotion. Who else do you know … the pope, the president? They’ve reached the epitome of their chosen profession – they can never go higher.”
While having reached the top tier of the enlisted force, Chief Parish stressed this was not the time to sit back and say, “I don’t have to worry about it anymore,” but to give back.
“Now, you have to worry about it more than anything else because it’s payback time,” he said. “It’s payback to a system that allowed you the opportunity to excel and achieve that. Now, you owe it to the system to make sure those who are below you are ready and are better than you are when they become chiefs; it’s up to you to develop them. And, you can never, ever forget where you came from.”
And, that is just what members took away.
“Being a chief is something we selects attained through our careers by our performance and leadership,” said Senior Master Sgt. Donald Miles, 86th Maintenance Operations Squadron superintendent. “Now that we are chiefs, we need to continue that performance and leadership. We need to live up to the status we have earned. I plan on doing just that, applying my expertise every day to lead and mentor our young Airmen and NCOs, so they will be the chiefs of tomorrow.”
While here, Chief Parish also spoke to Ramstein’s newest Airmen at the First Term Airman’s Center.
“Up to this point in their Air Force life, everything they do or are expected to do is directly monitored by someone,” he said. “Somebody has been totally involved in their lives. Now all of a sudden, they get to Ramstein, or their first duty station, they get issued a supervisor and they’re back in school again at FTAC. What I try to get across to them is you have the latitude and freedom now that you haven’t had since you were in high school, and what you do with that is going to determine whether you’re successful in the Air Force or not.”
Chief Parish went on to explain that as new Airmen they’re going to come to crossroads in their lives at some point. When determining which fork in the road to take, Airmen already have a good starting point to reference in the form of their family and military training instructors.
“When you come to that fork, you need to ask yourself the question: ‘If I take the left fork would I end up disappointing my MTI or family?’” the chief said. “If you could truly answer they would be disappointed, than chances are you shouldn’t be taking that road.”
As the retired chief rounded out his visit, he reflected on his life in the Air Force and the heritage we are starting for tomorrow’s Airmen.
“Sometimes we need to stop and think,” he said. “It takes time for things to have meaning. In 25 to 30 years, the Airman’s Creed will probably be more than just a creed; it will be something we take to heart. It doesn’t just apply to war zones. ‘Never leave an Airman behind’ … well, we don’t leave our people behind in war, but you also don’t leave them behind when you’re in ALS, at the NCO academy or at FTAC. We want to make sure everyone graduates and our fellow Airmen are taken care of. That’s all part of who we are; it becomes something unbelievably meaningful to us.”
For Sergeant Miles, the chief’s visit was an opportunity every Airman can benefit from.
“Chief Parish is a true inspiration to all Airmen, not just chiefs,” the superintendent said. “He has seen the Air Force go through many changes in the 50 plus years he has been associated with the military, and his passion continues to this day. We should all be thankful we have leaders such as Chief Parish to mentor us.”
Chief Parish, whose background is in weather, entered the Air Force in December 1954 and went on to become the eighth CMSAF Aug. 1, 1983. He retired from active duty June 30, 1986.
