Photo By 2nd Lt. De-Juan Haley | Members of the 130th Airlift Wing Charlie West Fitness Club pose for a photo prior to...... read more read more
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Airmen from the 130th Airlift Wing are taking an innovative approach to enhancing community involvement, camaraderie and physical fitness through the formation of the Charlie West Fitness Club.
With their inaugural participation event taking place May 6, 2017 in downtown Charleston, more than 50 members of the Charlie West Fitness Club signed up to participate in a local run/walk benefitting cancer research.
Their mission is simple: support members’ fitness endeavors while increasing the 130th Airlift Wing’s community involvement and public exposure through participation in fitness competitions and events.
“We had a group of like-minded people on base that started getting together to run, primarily in the beginning a few years ago, and we just enjoyed each other’s company and the bond that we already had from being in the unit together, so we started to want to include more people,” said Senior Master Sgt. Eric Condon, 130th Airlift Wing Inspector General Superintendent. “We started with a simple concept of getting t-shirts made as a way to identify us in the community when we go to races around the state or beyond, and then that morphed into a question of, ‘how could we bring in a broader scope of the wing?’ So then it turned into this collaboration to create this camaraderie club atmosphere that would focus on physical fitness.”
Since the early stages of their group’s formation, Senior Master Sergeants Eric Condon and Jeff King, founding members of the Charlie West Fitness Club, sought out a way to bring in more involvement. That involvement came later through the introduction of Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Williams, who was assigned to the Wing’s Community Action Information Board (CAIB), a leadership body that provides support to and discusses issues surrounding individuals, families and community issues.
Through their combined efforts, the three were able to get the support needed to encourage participation, purchase shirts for the group, and spread the word about the program’s benefits to a broader wing audience.
“Even though it started out as a running thing, we immediately recognized that we were limiting what the possibilities could be,” said Condon. “There are so many people who have their individual niches in physical fitness that it’s all kind of the same thing. If we can get wing physical fitness assessment scores to go up, then that’s a great by-product of the club.”
Condon and King reiterated that going forward, they’d like to see a group of like-minded individuals working toward a common goal together while showcasing the wing in the community.
“Long-term, we’ve already had discussions about more races in the future and have also talked about members signing up for weightlifting events or CrossFit competitions as well,” said Williams. “We think maintaining that social network is just as important, so on those days when someone maybe doesn’t feel like working out, they still want to see their comrades in the fitness club.”
The program is open to any 130th AW member, regardless of traditional or full-time status, and more programming is in the works for Unit Training Assembly weekends to build the program. Those interested in joining should contact Senior Master Sergeants Condon, Williams or King.
| Date Taken: | 05.06.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 05.07.2017 15:05 |
| Story ID: | 232907 |
| Location: | WEST VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 138 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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