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ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. – Air Force chaplains fill a critical, demanding role providing guidance and support to Airmen all over the world. The Chaplain Candidate Program is an initiative designed to cultivate well-trained and dedicated chaplains to ensure the spiritual strength of the force.
Hosted at Robins Air Force Base and led by the Air Force Reserve Command, the program plays a pivotal role in supplying the total force with capable spiritual leaders.
“The impact of well-trained chaplains and religious affairs Airmen is likely immeasurable,” said Lt. Col. Justin Ivy, Chaplain Candidate Program senior mentor and program alumnus. “How do you quantify the impact of walking through the difficult questions of a couple considering divorce, or holding the hand of an Airman pulled back from the edge of suicide? The chaplain corps’ religious support teams stand in the deep valleys of life where despair is thick like smoke and hopelessness has taken hold, but for the chaplains and religious affairs Airmen who remind us of the presence of the transcendent. Airmen will know they are not alone because their chaplain is nearby.”
Candidates are commissioned as second lieutenants, sent to the Officer Training School at Maxwell AFB, Alabama, and complete a month-long Initial Candidate Training course here at Robins.
ICT brings in a cadre of experienced chaplains and religious affairs Airmen to teach and mentor candidates across a variety of topics, regulations and ceremonies. Candidates also attend the religious services for a variety of different beliefs, allowing them to better serve service members of all faiths as well as those who do not follow a religion.
“As a graduate of the Chaplain Candidate Program many years ago, my experience as a mentor has been somewhat nostalgic,” said Ivy. “Senior chaplains poured wisdom out for us so we could discern God’s call on our life and our direction for ministry. I have been honored to walk with these chaplain candidates as they too explore and discern God’s purpose for their life and ministry.”
After three weeks immersed in the ministerial duties of a chaplain, candidates spend the final week of ICT at a field training exercise designed to replicate the stress and rigors of a deployed environment. Partnering with the 5th Combat Communication Group’s Combat Readiness School, candidates go through a series of intensive training events, including tactical casualty combat care, combatives and simulated combat scenarios, all while living in a field environment.
While enduring the challenges of training and adjusting to life in the field, candidates are expected to lead religious services and perform ceremonies – ensuring they are prepared for the demands of chaplaincy in the military.
“They’re getting an overview of what it would be like to be in a deployed environment, in a combat environment, to figure out how we fit in,” said Maj. Timothy Dahlstrom, 446th Airlift Wing deputy wing chaplain and Initial Candidate Course mentor. “We’re going through combat scenarios as noncombatants and figuring out how to embed ourselves into the middle of war, into the middle of the mission, and help others accomplish everything ahead of them.”
This hands-on approach is crucial for preparing chaplains to be the calm and steady presence Airmen need in times of uncertainty.
“I’ve seen firsthand how in the middle of the chaos, we get to step in and be that calm face, the reminder that when everything's not okay, it will be okay,” Dahlstrom added.
The training emphasizes the dual role chaplains play; while they may not engage in combat, they are integral to the spiritual and emotional battles Airmen face.
The program’s structure, which sends ICT graduates on tours to shadow religious support teams at active-duty bases, ensures future chaplains gain real-world experience. This exposure to military operations and the unique challenge of military ministry helps candidates develop the resilience and adaptability needed to support Airmen in diverse and often challenging environments.
Upon completing the program candidates become fully-fledged chaplains and may choose to stay in the Reserve or apply for active duty or Air Guard positions.
Ivy describes a key and unique aspect of the course as being its clemency period; at any point a candidate can leave the Chaplain Candidate Program to pursue a different Air Force career. Ivy explained the demands of chaplaincy are extremely rigorous and often very different than what candidates expected, and the challenges of the career require a committed chaplain who wants to be in the role. Offering a clemency period ensures graduates are prepared and dedicated for service.
Through preparing chaplains who are ready to serve with compassion and strength, the program ensures the spiritual well-being of Airmen is supported at every level, bolstering comprehensive Airman fitness and contributing to the overall readiness and morale of the total force.
| Date Taken: | 08.02.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 08.02.2024 09:34 |
| Story ID: | 477621 |
| Location: | ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, GEORGIA, US |
| Web Views: | 286 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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