Airmen participate in Resiliency Day

Airmen from around base participated in a Resiliency Day Nov. 9 on Ramstein.

Resiliency Day events included a commander’s call, face painting and a bouncy castle for children; a three-on-three basketball tournament; and a meet and greet with Michigan State University and University of Connecticut players.

“Resiliency Day allowed us to build Airmen and families who possess the physical, mental, social and spiritual skills to overcome life’s challenges and persevere in our military service,” said Brig. Gen. C.K. Hyde, 86th Airlift Wing commander, during the commander’s call. “Today, we met in core groups and unit level activities. I had the opportunity to thank our Airmen for their response to the attack on our embassy personnel in Benghazi. The 86th Airlift Wing has been working extremely hard, and we used Resiliency Day to focus on people … and have some fun along the way.”

The day’s events were a part of a larger plan of events, with the Armed Forces Classic being played at midnight in Hangar 5.

“We actually combined our efforts from planning the ESPN events and got together with the Civil Engineer Group and Force Support squadrons to bring in aspects that would allow us to have a successful day,” said Maj. Lorena Venegas, 86th Force Support Squadron operations officer. “We just had to ensure we got enough variety for our attendees to have fun.”

For one participant, resiliency means being able to take care of one another.

“To me, resiliency is helping fellow Airmen by making sure my peers are taken care of,” said Airman 1st Class George Hollowell, 86th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew chief. “I think it also means to be united as a family as on and off work and just making sure everyone is feeling OK.”

These resiliency days allow Airmen to refocus on the mission.

“Resiliency days we provide to our Airmen here allow them to take time from their hard work to decompress and rejuvenate themselves so they can continue supporting the mission,” Venegas said.

Events were capped off with a meet and greet with players from MSU’s basketball team, who played against UConn in their NCAA season opener.

“It was wonderful to have all of our Airmen come out as well as their families to enjoy the events before watching the Spartans and Huskies battle it out,” Venegas said.