17 Mar 2016

Memories of air shows past

The smell of burning JP-8 jet fuel wafting through my nostrils always reminds me of my childhood, and when I hear the roar of a jet engine I can’t help but think about all the times I attended air shows as a young boy. Those days were impressionable on me; they really assisted in discovering my sense of self.The Shaw Air Expo and open house

19 Feb 2016

Military, Political Activities

During the 2016 election season, the Air Force and the Department of Defense encourages Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen to exercise their right to vote and freely express their political views.  However, service members must be aware that their political activities have the potential to give the appearance of official

12 Feb 2016

Sending your vote home: how it works, why it matters

As voting season draws near and all of the commercials on TV seem to be nothing but presidential hopefuls pandering to their audiences, there seems to be a lot of questions rising to the forefront of service members' minds: What is absentee voting? How does it work? Why should I bother? Let's tackle these one at a time.First off, what is absentee

11 Feb 2016

The seven P's and where we go wrong

Five years ago I was living on my own in Southern California, working at my community college while attending courses and trying to become a famous musician.My five-year plan was to record as much music as I could at school in our commercial music program, play small shows with my band, and use the internet to make it big. But before you could say

10 Feb 2016

Celebrating African American History Month

February is African American History Month. According to the Association for the study of African American Life and History, the founders of the month long celebration, this year's theme is "Hallowed Grounds: Sites of African American Memories."To honor African American History Month at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, a celebration luncheon is

8 Feb 2016

Airmen encouraged to take pledge to save

Military Saves Week, the annual saving campaign hosted by the 20th Force Support Squadron Airman and Family Readiness Center (A&FRC,) will kick off Feb. 22-27 for Team Shaw.The Department of Defense partners with Military OneSource, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA,) and America Saves to host the 2016 campaign for military personnel

11 Jan 2016

Staying true to the new you

Grizzled gym rats who have made the gym their second home know what time of year this is: resolution season. The season when there's never a good parking spot, all the lockers are full, and that one person who has no idea how to use the leg press machine just won't get off the equipment.It can be a tricky time of year for fitness enthusiasts. For

3 Dec 2015

From dolls to gloves: martial arts inspires pledge to serve

A 4-year-old girl carefully ties a little white belt over her top trying to get the knot just right, showing even more care and precision than she did with the bow she fixed in her hair the previous day. Her nervous, but anxious fingers straighten the white gi she proudly wears, taking place of her pink shirt and floral pants.She softly and eagerly

30 Nov 2015

Shaw Air Force Base: finding my sweet Southern Belle

On the day a new Airman receives their first duty assignment, they are usually filled with several different emotions. Fear, excitement, uncertainty, hope, and unfortunately often times there are bits of sadness as well. After checking multiple times a day for weeks on end, that day will finally arrive when the assignment comes and one of these

10 Nov 2015

Team Shaw celebrates religious diversity this holiday season

One of the many benefits of military life is meeting people who are different than I am, whether it is political perspective, world-view, or even religious belief.Diversity is valued. Another hallmark highlighting the uniqueness of our way of life is, with diversity, there is also respect. In the Armed Forces these two values go hand-in-hand.The