JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas –
Commanders and senior noncommissioned officers from the 433rd Airlift Wing teamed up with their honorary commanders to serve lunch to military members at the Live Oak Dining Facility at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland Dec.7.
This event is the second month in a row the Alamo Wing invited their honorary commanders to participate in this special event. Throughout the lunch period, wing leadership and honorary commanders took shifts serving lunch.
After their shift of serving, commanders and senior enlisted went out into the dining area, had lunch, and visited with the Airmen while they dined.
"This is a wonderful opportunity for leaders, honorary commanders and Airmen to pause as we fellowship and to break bread together,” said Chief Master Sgt. Shana C. Cullum, 433rd AW command chief. “These events unite our team, because it builds comradery and develops relationships that enable our people to succeed in their missions.”
The wing hosts this type of events to help encourage discussions and foster relationships between military and community leaders, as well as within the ranks of military organizations.
“It was an amazing experience serving our servicemen and women in the 433rd Airlift Wing,” said Barbara Gervin-Hawkins, Texas Representative, District 120. “The most profound experiences were to see the food service operation that serves 20 million high-quality meals per year. In addition, talking with our young people who travel from all over America to serve. I’m still in awe.”
The Honorary Commanders Program establishes and maintains relationships between the city of San Antonio’s community and business leaders, and Joint Base San Antonio’s military community. The program was developed to encourage an exchange of ideas, share experiences, and foster friendships. It educates them about the wing, its units, and the mission of the Alamo Wing; making members of the local community feel like they are a part of the wing.
The honorary commanders included Andrew Camplen, Dept. of Texas state assistant adjutant; Roy Elizondo, City of Fair Oaks council member; Wayne Fagan, Dee Howard Foundation chair; Barbara Gervin-Hawkins, Texas Representative, District 120; Robert Imler, community & government relations consultant; Clay Richmond, JSWC Ltd. vice president; John Thurman, Heart of Texas Realty owner; Craig Veltri, Veltri Interests, Inc. founder; Rich Weimert, San Antonio Missions Baseball director of baseball operations; Paula Gold-Williams, CPS Energy CEO; and Steve Young, VIA Metropolitan Transit vice president of information technology.