JOINT BASE SAN ANTNOIO-LACKLAND, Texas. –
The Air Force Core values can remain with Airmen long after they retire the uniform, David Carter continues to live those values, integrity first, service before self and excellence in all we do.
Carter, 59th Medical Wing Information Technology Requirements & IT Asset Management chief, dedicated 26 years of his life to the uniformed service and is continuing his dedication for the Air Force.
A couple weeks after turning 17 years old, Carter decided to enlist into the Air Force in 1979.
“My older cousin had been in the Air Force many years earlier,” Carter said. “He looked so proud in his uniform, and everyone was so proud of him. It made me want to become part of something special.”
While in-processing at the Armed Forces Entrance & Examination Center in San Antonio, Carter received advice from a staff member who pointed him to a new direction in life.
“I had many choices, but I told him I wanted to be a security policeman,” Carter said. “He quickly pointed me in another direction. He said, 'Go medical! Try Pharmacy. You can do it!'”
As Carter transitioned to the military life, he started his career as a pharmacy specialist at Torrejon Air Base in Spain, serving two years there. He was then assigned to the 59th Medical Wing in 1982 where he served nine more years of active duty.
In 1993, he began his civil service career working at Wilford Hall Medical Center, and continued his uniformed service in the Air Force Reserve for the next 15 years. Carter retired from wearing the uniform in 2006, but has remained dedicated to his civil service career at the 59th MDW ever since.
“This year I will be celebrating 36 years of employment at Wilford Hall,” said the retired senior master sergeant. “I would not trade one day of it for anything else.”
Carter now oversees IT Asset Management, with approximately 20,000 assets that have a combined valued greater than $13 million, the central point for information technology equipment tracking and distribution. This section manages roughly 100 equipment accounts and assists the custodians with their training, inventories, general management and health of their accounts.
“I love doing this job,” Carter said. “At first, I was a bit intimidated, but my leadership made me feel confident about it, and I turned it around, making the program something I have been proud of ever since.”
As the one central point for all new IT requests, requestors are directed to the IT Requirements Section, where Carter’s team analyze and provide technical solutions. Solutions that require hardware or software assets are then forwarded to IT Asset Management or Software License Management, which both fall under him.
“I do not do this alone,” he said. “It only happens because I have great people helping me along the way. I have been blessed with people who have pride in their work and have supported me and the goals I have for our sections.”
Carter believes the Air Force’s greatest strength is its Airmen, due to their strong character and dedication to the service’s core values. Carter is happy being surrounded by very smart and motivated people, who never give up.
“No matter how bad things get or how many obstacles are thrown into the path, I am extremely proud to work here, and I feel it is a privilege,” Carter said. “This institution stands for the ultimate quality in patient care, and has a rich history of service to our members in uniform and their families.”
“Be proud of what you do here because it impacts many other people and has a long reach in the overall mission,” Carter said.