Enlisted Thunderbirds Visit Air Force Widows

  • Published
  • By Jodi L. Jordan
  • Deputy Director of Marketing
SHALIMAR, Fla. --  When the pilots of the Thunderbirds, the Air Force's air demonstration team, perform their precision maneuvers thousands of feet above an Air Show crowd, they're applauded and admired - from a distance. The enlisted Airmen who maintain the F-16 jets flown by the Thunderbird pilots are similarly isolated, behind the scenes, working while the crowd enjoys the show. Recently, however, members of the Thunderbirds team and a very special group of admirers made a personal connection, and it wasn't at an Air Show. It was because of an Air Show cancellation.

The Sunshine State wasn't living up to its name Saturday. Impending severe weather caused officials from Eglin Air Force Base to cancel their much-anticipated Air Show, including the Thunderbirds' performance, slated for that day. Faced with some unexpected and unusual free time, more than 20 enlisted members of the team made a surprise visit to Hawthorn House, the Air Force Enlisted Village's assisted living residence for widows of retired enlisted Airmen. The residents at Hawthorn House learned of the visit less than an hour before the Airmen were to arrive. The women gathered in the building's foyer, peering out the glass front doors, each trying to be the first to see the members of the team. "Are they here yet?," said one resident as she leaned on her walker. "Is that them?" asked another from her motorized wheelchair, when she saw a van pass.

Soon the Airmen arrived, sharply dressed in their signature blue flight suits. Handshakes turned to hugs as the team went around the room, kneeling to talk to residents who couldn't stand, posing for pictures and signing Thunderbirds programs the Airmen had brought as gifts.

"I just want to thank you all so much for what you do," said Dian Haynes, a Hawthorn House resident, as she embraced one young airman. "I just love you all for it."

The visit was the result of a dinner the night before between Senior Master Sgt. Frank Dailey, who works at Hurlburt Field, and Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Webster, the line chief for the Thunderbirds. Dailey and Webster were classmates at the Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the friends had decided to have dinner together the night before the Air Show. The team had been given tours of many of the facilities on Eglin, but they weren't scheduled to see the Air Force Enlisted Village, one of the four official charities of the Air Force, which is located nearby. "I told Kevin he had to go see it," Dailey said. "The ladies who live at the Enlisted Village are our national treasures. They had to keep the families going in a time when it was very tough to be an Air Force wife, while their husbands were serving our country. They deserve our utmost respect and admiration for what they gave to the Air Force, too." Dailey, a long-time supporter of the AFEV, insisted that he and Webster drive by the campus that night, so that the team would know how to find the place if the anticipated severe weather caused a cancellation the next day. When that scenario unfolded Saturday, Webster called Dailey, and they set up the visit with the staff of the AFEV. "I guess the good Lord just wanted those guys to visit the ladies," Senior Master Sgt. Dailey said.

In addition to visiting with residents, the Airmen received a briefing on the mission of the AFEV. "This place is your heritage. We need your help to get the word out about the Air Force Enlisted Village," said Glenn Yost, Hawthorn House administrator. "There are people in the Air Force today who have no idea that we exist. We're there to provide a home for all enlisted surviving spouses. We can also help active duty spouses if their sponsor dies, and we can take the dependent parents of active duty and retirees."

None of the Thunderbirds' jets flew that day, but the team still dazzled their audience. And this time, the Airmen left just as amazed as the people in the crowd.

"I think the most significant thing for me and for many of the guys who made the visit was the opportunity to see where our donations are going," said Staff Sgt. Kristi Machado, an aerial photographer with the Thunderbirds. "Throughout our Air Force career, we're asked to donate to different organizations, and we do. But getting to see the facility and meet the people who are supported by those donations was a wonderful thing."

Following Sunday's Air Show, Webster, Machado and another group of enlisted team members returned to the Hawthorn House for one more visit. They brought with them three signed Thunderbirds lithographs for each of the AFEV's three locations, and more than $800 that the Airmen had raised overnight to donate to the AFEV. "You really touched our hearts during our visit yesterday," Senior Master Sgt. Webster said to a group of residents. "This donation represents our appreciation for you and what you've done." For more information on the Air Force Enlisted Village, see their website at www.afenlistedwidows.org or call 1-800-258-1413.