Photo By Master Sgt. Joseph Harwood | Tech. Sgt. Michael Swick and Airman 1st Class Hunter Mitchell show children of the...... read more read more
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MANSFIELD, Ohio – Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2014, is a special day. A Federal Holiday for some, a day of festivities for many and most importantly a day to recognize all of the sacrifices made by so few for so many. The Base Honor Guard of the 179th Airlift Wing (AW), Mansfield, Ohio, knows this better than most. They perform at funerals with military honors and they post the colors at events all times of the year. Every year around Veterans Day, their schedule fills up with events that request their services. These service members volunteer their time and often pay out of their own pocket to make it to these various events and locations. They do it for the love of their country and the pride they have in their brothers and sisters who have given their all.
The 179th AW Base Honor Guard Noncommissioned Officer In Charge, Tech. Sgt. Michael Swick, scrambles to meet the ever growing amount of request that pour in from the community. The 179th Airlift Wing has approximately 30 members of the Base Honor Guard, many of whom are traditional Air National Guardsmen who work full time at civilian employment, raise families, attend college and stay active in their community, all of which manage to volunteer what time they can to make these request to cover Honor Guard events.
During the week of Veterans Day, the 179th AW Base Honor Guard logged 395 miles and 104 man-hours performing a total of twelve Color Guard events. While some events require a full color guard of four personnel, others are manned with three, two, or even one Ceremonial Guardsman. 44 positions were requested to fill during this week, and eleven Ceremonial Guardsmen fulfilled the requests. Many of these dedicated individuals performed in multiple events; one member, SSgt Alexander Elmlinger, performed in eleven of the twelve events.
Tech. Sgt. Swick started off his evening Nov. 10, 2014, the night before Veterans Day, covering a Veterans Day event at the First Congressional Church of Mansfield, OH, where 179th AW Commander, Col. Gary McCue was a guest speaker. After posting and retiring the colors at the event, Swick ironed his uniform and hung it up for some rest. Veterans Day started at 0630 for Swick, when he arrived at the base to load the van and make final adjustments to his uniform. Having destroyed one of his high-gloss boots performing Military Funeral Honors at Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery last week, he was still breaking in a new set of boots. Like the rest of the Base Honor Guard’s Ceremonial Uniform, these boots are highly modified with metal taps on the toes, sides, and heels, which aid in the team’s synchronization. After fitting taps to the new boots, he applied one more coat of the obligatory heel and sole dressing, and then checked the van to assure that all gear for the day's events had been loaded. By 0715, the Base Honor Guard was rolling out the front gate.
The day would have them in front of many crowds. The first event of the day was at Monroeville High School, where a long time member of the 179th Airlift Wing, Senior Master Sgt. Scott Sparks, was attending a ceremony that his daughter, Sarah Sparks, had helped to organize. Sarah, a junior at Monroeville High School, spearheaded a campaign to raise the funds for a 12 ft. x 18 ft. American Flag that can retract into the ceiling of the gymnasium and roll out for events. The Veterans Day event dedicated the new flag and the 179th AW Base Honor Guard presented the Colors for the crowd.
The next stop was at the Mansfield Veterans Day Parade. Each year, members of the 179th AW and 200th Red Horse volunteer to participate in this event. The Base Honor Guard can always be found at the front of the parade, leading the community of veterans and their supporters down Park Avenue into the square of downtown Mansfield.
After the parade, the honor guard members went to the Texas Roadhouse, one of many local restaurants that offer a free meal to veterans and active service members on Veterans Day. The community support of their service is strong in Mansfield, yet another reason the Base Honor Guard strives to support it in return.
After refueling at the Texas Roadhouse, the Honor Guard is back on the road. This time they are called to action at Mifflin Elementary School. A large crowd of parents, teachers and students fill the gymnasium with patriotism and a special moment of silence arrives when the Base Honor Guard steps out to perform. Some children in the room stand at attention, visibly in awe of the men in the blue uniforms. This will no doubt be a Veterans Day at school that they are not soon to forget.
The last event of the day is held at the Salvation Army’s Dewald Community Service Center. Tech. Sgt. Katie Casto of the 179th AW volunteers some of her spare time working with the children there and requested that Capt. Matt Bulanda, a pilot of the 164th Airlift Squadron and Staff Sgt. Cesali Adams, a 179th AW recruiter, be guest speakers at their Veterans Day event, and the Base Honor Guard to present their program on the history of the flag of the United States. The children asked a variety of questions about what the military is like, what basic training was like and what it would take for them to someday be a part of it all. One child showed off her ability to do a proper push up and another child asked to see the military members do ten of them as demonstration. As the children requested, the Base Honor Guard in full Ceremonial Uniform, a recruiter and a pilot were all giving them the show they asked for.
Swick reflected on the day as he loaded up the van from the last event, it was getting dark and he was visibly tired.
Swick said, “At the end of the day, the training, traveling, and volunteered time are all well-spent when you see the pride in a spectator's face, hear a room full of children yell "thank you" in unison, or just know inside that you have served as the Air Force and Air National Guard's ambassador to the community. Some of the people we have seen in the last week may not have any other exposure to the military; maybe one day some of the students will join the military themselves, possibly even the 179th Airlift Wing. You just never know who you have made an impression on.”
| Date Taken: | 11.11.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 11.13.2014 09:26 |
| Story ID: | 147690 |
| Location: | MANSFIELD, OHIO, US |
| Web Views: | 246 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Veterans Day for the 179th Base Honor Guard, by MSgt Joseph Harwood, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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