Commentary

As a lieutenant, I often find myself in peculiar situations when it comes to leadership. “LTs” are required to be leaders, while at the same time soaking in all of the lessons provided to us by senior NCOs and senior officers.

Since taking command on June 10th, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many of the great Airmen from the 86th Airlift Wing. It is a privilege to serve with you, the men and women who provide combat airlift and operate the Air Force’s premier installation to enable and assure strategic capabilities.

Even though I have been a squadron commander for three years, I have been an Air Force mental health provider for more than 21 years.

Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and civilians in the KMC area … I would like to take a moment to thank and congratulate you all for the incredible support and accomplishments I have witnessed in the last 2 1/2 years as commander of the 435th Air Ground Operations Wing.

This old proverb illustrates how the failure of a simple task — the shoeing of a horse — can have dire consequences for a larger mission: the prosecution of a battle.

We all have our bumps in the road. Some are minor speed humps and others are gaping potholes. Those are times where it seems there is nowhere to turn. But it isn’t about what got us there; it’s about what brought us back that counts and makes us resilient Airmen.

I have been to the KMCC twice in the last two weeks and have parked out front from the main entrance. While walking into the center, I look around, and I must say, I am very embarrassed at the amount of trash I see on the ground.