Photo By Staff Sgt. Terrence Clyburn | Tech Sgt. Tanya Kinard poses for an official photo. Kinard organized a trunk or treat...... read more read more
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It took one email to begin a sequence of events that led Tech Sgt. Tanya Kinard, a member of the New York Air Nationals Guard’s 105th Airlift Wing, to start a new tradition in Brooklyn's Canarsie neighborhood.
Each year prior to Halloween, members of Stewart Air National Guard Base are invited to a trunk or treat on base. Last year, when Kinard, the wing equal opportunity professional realized that a two-hour commute would be difficult for her and other Airmen to attend the trunk or treat, she decided to host one for her community in Canarsie, Brooklyn.
“If not me, then who's going to do it?” Kinard recalled asking herself. “Somebody may do it, but I wasn’t going to sit around and wait.”
Motivated to bring her community a trunk or treat, Kinard reached out to the wing family readiness coordinator at the time, Mia Bright, to get some pointers and begin planning.
During the event, families would park their cars within the neighborhood and decorate them in Halloween themes. In a safe twist on classic trick or treating, children would go to each car and take candy from the open trunks.
“I have three kids, one son and two daughters. Most people I know didn’t know about trunk or treat until a few years ago,” Kinard said, explaining many of the houses in her neighborhood don’t even participate in traditional trick or treating.
While organizing the event, Kinard was also working three jobs. She is a dispatcher for the New York City Fire Department, Joint Task Force Empire Shield Transportation non-commissioned officer and member of the Equal Opportunity team for the N.Y. Air National Guard.
“Kinard's ability to seek solutions, effectively plan courses of action, and communicate her vision are all skills she has honed during her military career which Directly carried over to her selfless service in her community”, said 1st Lt. Michael Circe, the equal opportunity director with the 105th Airlift Wing.
Circe explained one of the strengths of the Air National Guard is that it encourages members to sharpen their outside experiences alongside their duties in the military. In this case, Kinard used the variety of skills she developed as an equal opportunity advocate to organize a large event for her neighborhood.
“I had a passion to do it,” said Kinard. “At the end of the night my feet could be burning, stomach rumbling, but I felt good because it feels bigger than me!”
“For members who live further away, I can see there being a challenge to attend base-wide events that take place during the week or not during a regularly scheduled drill weekend,” said Circe. “Regardless of where she is or what she’s doing, Kinard is deeply committed to furthering the growth and development of others and it has been wonderful seeing the impact she has on all.”
Despite juggling three jobs, raising three children and supporting a husband running his own barber shop, Kinard said she would not let her family miss out on yet another community event. Thus, the Canarsie trunk or treat was born.
“It is a fun experience,” Kinard said. “We don't have to worry about whose houses the kids are going to. It's safe. That's all I wanted for them.”
In just its second year running, the trunk or treat has grown to be more than just handing out candy to kids. Families from around the community and even the 105th come together to enjoy each other’s company and celebrate the season.
“Just because I was separated from the base event didn’t mean I couldn’t bring the event to me. I feel fulfilled and full of joy when I see the kids having a good time and people in the community coming together,” Kinard added.
| Date Taken: | 12.05.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 12.05.2023 13:20 |
| Story ID: | 459157 |
| Location: | NEWBURGH, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 625 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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