Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Tour and Independence Day Picnic

July 2^nd, 2009

I don’t know where to begin with this event, it was one of the most memorable appearances I have ever had! I have never felt so welcome or honored! When we arrived at the Base in Goldsboro, we were greeted at the Visitor’s Center by Captain Andy Ladd (Our guide for our trip to SJAFB). When we went through the gates, the entrance sign read WELCOME MISS NC JULIE TESH! We were told that only the rank of a visiting General gets on that sign, so I was pretty high up! I was so thrilled and we felt so welcome! I went with my Mom and Dad to the base! We got a tour of the base; it was like its own separate city (it had everything)! Our first stop was going to the control tower at the base and the landing strip! We saw the simulator for the tower and took the flights up to the tower and saw the view and the 3,000+ acres of the air force base! Seymour Johnson is the largest Air Force Base in the country! It was pretty amazing seeing how they run the planes from the tower and from the control room. Seeing how new people are trained in the simulator with everything was just like the actual control tower! Our second stop was taking a tour of the 333^rd’ fighter squadron. This was the squadron that our Captain was a part of. We got to see the room with all their equipment, and where their flying schedules are. In this unit we sat in on an unclassified briefing on fighter jets (F-15E Strike Eagles) and learned about all of the abilities of these amazing fighter planes. We learned that our Captain had been in Afghanistan for one tour, and that the 334^th Fighter wing had just been deployed to Iraq, this was the wing he was a part of before he joined with the 333^rd to teach and instruct use of the Strike Eagle and not just fly them in combat. We had a life support tour, and the brief was very educational. We then took a tour of the F-15E static on the 4RW ramp. Seymour Johnson has over 90 F-15E Jets, which are each about 50 million dollars, it was the most amazing feeling of security and pride to see all of these Strike Eagles on the ramps surrounded by Air Force pilots and maintenance fighting for our country in the air! Their mission is “Providing Air Power, On-Target, On-Time for America.” Seymour Johnson was established right after WWII in honor of Navy Lt. Seymour Johnson in 1942. The base has been home to many bombers, tankers and aircrafts, who are all on active duty. After learning about the F-15E and sitting on the side of the STRIKE EAGLE, and seeing the courage and bravery of these young men and women I was escorted to the Independence Day Picnic in the Park on Base. Many of the Air Force Men and Women were there with their families and even pets! So many tents were set up with all kinds of things (hot dogs, corn dogs, cotton candy, drinks, candy bars). I kicked off the festivities at about 5pm. There were 3 band acts that were there in support of our troops. The bands and Stephen (the main act) were amazing! Most of them were previous war heroes back from service to our country with an inspiring story to tell. After walking around and talking more with Captain Ladd, I went up on stage and thanked everyone at SJAFB for an amazing afternoon, one I would never forget. I was so honored to be there with amazing men and women fighting for our freedom and independence. I wished everyone there a Happy 4^th of July, and said how proud I am to be an American. I had learned so much, and I continued to learn through all of the people I had met throughout the evening and the wonderful job Captain Ladd (and all the other LT. and COL.) had done to make us feel so welcome and for my family to have this opportunity. An even bigger opportunity for me to be able to learn about the Military service in our country and to share it to everyone and teach others the importance of their continued service and dedication. I was incredibly humbled to speak at this event because I am very patriotic and I strongly believe in and support the work our military is doing domestically and abroad. So to be among these men and women of duty and honor to our country was the greatest honor. These humans are doing the highest level of service to our country, I am volunteering and serving my country in that way, but their service is so important to our democracy and existence. One of the stories that Captain Ladd told us as we learned about him was that he tries to help through volunteering when he can. In Afghanistan he said the people and children over there were so poor and controlled by the Taliban, they had nothing, no shoes on their feet. So when our troops would receive care packages they would give them to the people of the country who needed those things more than they did. In fact they started telling people back home what they could send these people to help them, when it came in, they hand delivered these items to kids who so desperately needed things we all take for granted. It was a very emotional story, one of many we heard throughout the day. I left in tears of joy, and to top off a most incredible day, I was given one of the most remarkable, honorable gifts from Captain Ladd. He gave me an American Flag that was flown over Afghanistan in My honor during Project Enduring Freedom on his mission, in his Strike Eagle F-15E Fighter plane. He gave me that along with arm patches like the Airmen and women wear as well as a T-shirt, and other mementos of my trip, as well as a very detailed book on the base. He also put together stories from his missions and tours over seas to help me better understand what he went through and what we were fighting for as a country. He had put these stories together for his old high school alma mater in Texas and thought it would help me to read them. I am still so honored to have had this opportunity and looking back through all the wonderful pictures reminds me of a wonderful learning experience and making so many new friends at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base! Thank you to everyone there for making this trip so special for my family and me!