Airman’s Attic holds grand re-opening

The Airman’s Attic held a grand re-opening April 4 after moving to their new location near the southside barbershop on Ramstein.

“The Airman’s Attic is a place for Airmen, E-5 and below, to come out and get items they may need,” said Master Sgt. Robert Colter, chairman for the Airman’s Attic. “We’re just here to provide them free items to get them started.”

“Airmen don’t get paid a lot. That’s the reality of today’s world,” Colter said. “Especially when you have a family as an A1C, like I did. Sometimes you don’t have the extra money at the end of the month to go get a coffee maker or a clothing item you may need.”

Searching for a new location took time, but was needed due to limited space.

“About a year ago, we started looking for more space because our original spot was only 700 square feet,” said Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Gordon, a committee lead for the Airman’s Attic. “We had piles and piles of donations. So I started working with (civil engineering), who got me in contact with the right individual to look for space.”

Gordon didn’t have to go far to find the Attic’s new home.

“The honor guard relocated to another space, so we were fortunate enough to be offered their old facility,” Gordon said. “Thankfully, the space right next to our old location was where the honor guard was.”

The newly acquired 3,500 square feet of space allows for the Airman’s Attic to better support those in need.

“The new space is amazing; we went from a cramped closet to a huge area we can barely fill,” said Master Sgt. Victoria Miller, Airman’s Attic committee chair. “We can accept things we haven’t been able to take before, like furniture. We use the old space as a receiving area where we sort items before placing it on display.”

The Airman’s Attic is able to function because of the numerous volunteers.

“This is all done by volunteers,” Gordon said. “Up until two or three months ago, we were asking E-5s and above to volunteer from different organizations. However, there have been a lot of Airmen who want to volunteer, so we opened it up to them.”

To volunteer, send an e-mail to airmansattic.ramstein@ramstein.af.mil. A link will then be sent where you can see the schedule and volunteer for a time. Or you can just come out and sign in.

The Attic is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and on the last Saturday of the month.