Photo By Master Sgt. Bryan Hoover | Pennsylvania Air National Guardsman, Command Chief Master Sgt. Charles Wiley is shown...... read more read more
In the heart of every American service member beats a solemn commitment to safeguard, not just the nation but their beloved family as well. Yet, Amidst the valor and sacrifice is a complex tapestry of family and military ties that can unexpectedly become obstacles. Command Chief Master Sgt. Charles Wiley’s 33-year military career has strengthened familial bonds while navigating challenges through the support of his own family and Air National Guard family.
Coming from a military family, Wiley always had a strong interest in serving his country. A year after Wiley’s brother (Ed) had enlisted in the U.S. Navy, Wiley embarked on his own journey down a slightly different path in the U.S. Army.
In 1987, Wiley processed through the Pittsburgh Military Enlistment Processing Station, took his initial oath of enlistment, and shipped off to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. After basic combat training and advanced individual training, Wiley relocated to Fort Ord, California. After one year of serving, he returned home to marry his high school sweetheart, Cindy Digiandomenico.
Cindy’s sister, Pauline, married Wiley’s childhood friend Gary W. Hutsler Sr. He had served in the active-duty component of the Air Force before transitioning into the Pennsylvania Air National Guard. Even though they were many miles apart, Wiley and his wife kept in close contact with the Hutsler family.
As Wiley and Hutsler’s military careers progressed in very different directions, fate kept their family close, even during war. During operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, Wiley, his brother Ed Wiley, Hutsler, and his brother Mark Hutsler, a member of the PAANG, were all deployed simultaneously in the same region.
“If you have ever deployed, you know that it’s easy to disconnect with family and friends to move the time along faster,” said Wiley. “I chose to stay in constant contact with my brother while he was in the navy and Gary in the Air National Guard.” Hutsler was a Tech. Sgt. at the 171st Air Refueling Wing at the time.
As Wiley’s enlistment in the Army was coming to an end, both he and his wife wanted to start a new chapter by moving back home.
Transitioning to a civilian environment after eight years of military service was hard for Wiley. Wiley faced persistent challenges in securing full-time civilian employment to support his family. Hutsler had since commissioned to an officer position at the 171st ARW and encouraged Wiley to reenlist so he could continue his service towards a military retirement.
“He was always nagging me to get back in. Anytime I saw him, he got on my case,” said Wiley.
After a four-year break in service, Wiley really started to reflect on Hutsler’s praise of the 171st. After speaking with the recruiting team, Wiley learned that he would retain his rank from the Army as an E-5 (Staff Sgt.) upon reenlisting with the ANG.
“If I’m being truthful, I missed it. I really wanted to get back into the military and felt that he (Hutsler) was right, it’s the right decision,” he said. “I wanted to finish what I started. My goal was to get back in, make it to E-7 (Master Sgt.) and retire.”
To rejoin the military, he had to take the oath of enlistment again. Wiley wanted it to have some meaning. Only the President, Vice President, or the officers appointed over him could administer the oath. Needing an officer, Wiley wanted his brother-in-law to do it. “He nagged me enough to recruit me,” he chuckled. “But I wanted him to do it. I’ve always felt that the oath was really special, so to have a lifelong friend and my brother-in-law deliver it to me; that made it really special. Family is really important to me, without them, it would be hard to serve.”
Shortly after enlisting as a part-time guardsman, the 171st had a full-time position open and offered Wiley a job in vehicle maintenance. This allowed him a new opportunity to grow and develop. “I used to always tell John Campbell (the former vehicle management chief enlisted manager) that one day, I’m going to be the VM chief.” Although he has changed positions many times to reach his goal, Wiley ended up surpassing his initial Master Sgt. goal and became the chief of vehicle management.
Throughout his career, both Wiley and Hutsler watched with pride as eight immediate family members joined the 171st.
Years of mission changes, deployments, and plenty of hard work propelled Wiley forward to set new goals eventually pushing him towards the wing’s next command chief position. However, an Air Force regulation prevented him from applying. Family members must be separated by at least two levels of supervision within their unit. Command Chief Master Sgt. is considered a first-level supervisor for all enlisted members within the unit.
With two enlisted members of the family remaining in the unit, Wiley’s son, Charles Wiley Jr. and Hutsler’s youngest daughter, Brittany Stephenson it was improbable for Wiley to apply for the command chief position.
Around 2017, Wiley Jr. decided to move on and separate from military service. And as fate would have it, Stephenson aspired to follow in her family’s footsteps and become a commissioned officer. “Both my parents, two sisters, brother, two brothers-in-law and my husband were all commissioned officers,” said Stephenson. “The running joke is that I didn't have a seat at the dinner table unless I commissioned.”
Fortunately, when the right opportunity presented itself in 2018, she applied, interviewed, and accepted a position as an officer in the Force Support Squadron. In doing so, she claimed her seat at the Hutsler dinner table, while simultaneously clearing the way for her uncle to apply for the job he was dreaming about.
After 33 years of service, Wiley is now on his final re-enlistment. As his final oath of service approached, he knew he wanted it to be extra special. “I had a rare opportunity, my brother-in-law gave me my first oath at the beginning of my Air Force career,” exclaimed Wiley. “I believe that the oath of enlistment is special, within itself. It carries a special bond from one service member to the next, a moment that connects all enlisted members to each other,” said Wiley. “So to have my niece, 25 years after her father give me my initial oath, stand here and give me my final oath, It’s the perfect ending for me.”
Behind the camouflage and medals, family ties strengthen the unity of the ANG. Command Chief Master Sgt. Charles W. Wiley will end his military service in the ANG the same way he began it - with family.
| Date Taken: | 08.07.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 08.07.2024 10:56 |
| Story ID: | 477982 |
| Location: | PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 51 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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