• Labor Day - take a safe, well deserved break

    Labor Day weekend marks the end of the Sane Summer safety campaign, a period historically associated with increased mishaps. Over this Labor Day weekend take a well deserved break, recharge and have fun playing with your kids, family and friends. However, Labor Day weekend can be one of the

  • You are the foundation of your team's success

    I spent 24 years in Nutritional Medicine. Many of you know us as Medical Food Service, the folks in the basement of the hospital that provide meals to the patients and staff. Prior to coming to Vance, I was superintendent of Nutritional Medicine at Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio,

  • Danger lurks around even the simple tasks

    Every day you get into your vehicle to run errands, drive to the store and come to work. Sounds simple enough. Get in, buckle up, start the car, put it in reverse, pull out of the driveway, close the garage door and off you go. You've done this a thousand times so what is the problem? If you are

  • Drinking and driving -- recipe for the wrong choice

    As a student in Phase Two of Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, there's no greater feeling than 5:30 p.m. on a Friday. You are finally done for the week. You flew six sorties in the aircraft, knocked out four simulator events, and passed the Emergency Procedure Quiz with flying colors.

  • Lead by example with effective stress, pressure management

    Gen. George S. Patton Jr., said it best -- "Pressure makes diamonds." The military world we work in is full of high-stakes tasks, urgent requirements, and change. These all result in pressure. Leaders have a double duty. First, they have to do what they can to manage external pressures so their

  • Fitness lies I’ve told myself

    As we prepare for the revised Air Force fitness testing program, I've spent the last couple of months educating myself on diet and fitness -- subjects I thought I knew plenty about. I was mistaken. Throughout my career I've prepared for and passed each physical training test. Although I never scored

  • The gift of mentorship

    If asked what the number one reason for any success I have achieved in my career is, I would answer without hesitation -- my mentors. While they did not give me a free ticket to promotion or an inside avenue to assignments, they were pivotal in providing me the inspiration, vector and

  • The opportunity to serve

    "That could have been me..." That thought came to mind as I read a recent commentary by a lieutenant at Vance AFB. In it, she apologized for showing disappointment on her assignment night. She was at the end of the T-38 phase, and instead of receiving the expected fighter or bomber, she was selected

  • Leading learning innovation key to developing Airmen

    The Air Force has a heritage rooted in technology and innovation. From our earliest days, Airmen have sought to find a better way to dominate the domains in which we operate -- air, space, and now, cyberspace. Developing superior capabilities which enable global vigilance, global reach and global

  • My Space – a privilege, a responsibility

    Although I used to be a computer network engineer, this article won't be about the dangers of social-networking Web sites -- or the hazards of pre-paying the Arch-Duke of Slobovia to ensure future riches because he woke-up in a bathtub of ice minus a kidney. No, this will be different. This "My