• Taking care of your wingman is a call for action

    Taking care of your wingman isn't just a catch phrase in today's Air Force -- it's a call for action. It means more than being a designated driver. It means being an active listener, advisor and helping that individual find assistance, if needed. Take an active role It's important to sit down and

  • Changes on horizon: keep focused

    Team Vance -- I hope everyone was able to make it out to the Mark Price Arena last night to see Tops in Blue, the U.S. Air Force's premier entertainers. This group does such a tremendous job. I have seen them perform several times throughout my career. The shows and the performers just keep getting

  • Vision shapes, brings direction to chaplain corps

    U.S. Air Force Chief of Chaplains, Chaplain, (Maj. Gen.) Charles C. Baldwin, unveiled the new Chaplain Service Vision at the Worldwide Wing Chaplain and NCO in Charge Conference held last November in Washington, D.C. The vision is simple and straight forth: "Glorifying God -- Honoring Airmen --

  • Thank you Vance, Enid community

    The first thing I noticed when I returned from my recent deployment at the end of January was that it was colder here than Iraq. That was just fine with me. I was in Oklahoma. I was in America. I'll take the United States of America any day, no matter what the temperature. As I came through the

  • Faith, courage, perseverance: What it means to be an American

    These are troubling times for Americans. The last few years have been tough -- the blatant attacks on our country on Sept. 11, 2001, the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq and the all too real understanding that many people around the world hate us simply because we are Americans. All of

  • New commander ready to 'fly' wing smoothly

    Team Vance flight check-in ... two! ... three! ... four! Experienced aviators often gauge the quality of a formation by the timeliness and smoothness of the initial check-in. There's almost nothing as sweet to a flight lead as the crisp echoes of wingmen responding to his or her call. Likewise,

  • Individuals control their own career success

    If you're like me, you find work at the tactical, mission execution level of operations much more appealing than the separation and additional issues that flow with higher positions and levels of responsibility. Quite frankly, it was more fun to be on the pointy end where there were fewer

  • Team Vance -- It's been an honor being your commander!

    As I write this final article as your wing commander, I'd like to try to articulate what an honor it has been for me to have served as your commander. Since Aug 2003, all of you have made my vision of "building a professional and physically fit officer, enlisted and civilian work force dedicated to

  • Operations security needed in daily lives

    In recent years, our nation has suffered several terrorist attacks -- the Oklahoma City bombing, the U.S.S. Cole attack and the tragic events that unfolded on Sept. 11, 2001. In these cases, the adversaries were successful because they knew our nation's vulnerabilities. Americans at large provided

  • Team Vance continues to be very relevant

    Team Vance -- we continue to be very relevant! As my time as your commander draws to a close, I am reminded of the many issues that make Vance Air Force Base very much a RELEVANT part of our U.S. Air Force and Department of Defense strategy! We are the U.S. Air Force's ONLY Joint Specialized