Photo By Christopher Hurd | Air Force Staff Sgt. William H. Dameron and his mentee Romel pose for a photo during a...... read more read more
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WASHINGTON - Finding ways to give back and make a positive impact on the lives of others is a lifelong mission for some.
Air Force Staff Sgt. William H. Dameron, a medical technician with 579th Medical Group at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling (JBAB) is one of those people.
Giving back through mentoring others gives him a great sense of joy.
“It’s a feeling I can’t even put into words,” he said. “It’s one of those things where I just light up on the inside.”
Dameron’s desire to help others comes from his own childhood struggles. Growing up in Hinesville, Georgia, he was physically and emotionally abused by his mother. His father, who was in the Army, was often on deployment leaving his mother to look after four children. Instead of guiding and showing him the way, she would constantly put him down.
“I didn’t always feel smart growing up,” he said. “I always had someone beating on me and telling me I was stupid. At some point you start believing it.”
Mental and physical abuse weren’t the only things he endured. Dameron and his siblings would often bounce from place to place, sometimes having their possessions thrown out on the streets. They often went hungry.
He remembers that hunger. His dad was living in Texas and Dameron hadn’t seen his mother in a week. The only thing that he could find to eat in the fridge was a single egg. He boiled it up and split the egg four ways to share it with his siblings.
“No one should have to experience anything like that, We would be so hungry, we would lie down on the floor and dream about the game Candy Land and wish we could be there eating all the food we wanted,” he said. “It took our minds off the fact we weren’t eating.”
To escape the abuse, he joined the Air Force. It was August of 2005 and he had just finished high school. When he entered, he explained, he was an emotional mess.
“You don’t really know what kind of damage the abuse does, but it has an everlasting effect on you,” he said.
He credits the military and some of the programs like Military OneSource with helping him find himself. Since joining, he has looked for ways to give back and help others through the struggles in their lives.
“I’ve always had a passion to help people, because regardless of what your background is, I never want to see anybody struggle,” he said.
He has also tried to be a mentor for his two younger siblings, who also joined the Air Force. His younger brother, 21, was named Air Education and Training Command (AETC) Headquarters Airman of the Year in 2013 and was recently promoted to staff sergeant. His sister, 27, is on track to complete her bachelor’s degree in psychology next spring.
“I am so proud of them,” he said. “I can’t even take any of the credit; they put in all the hard work. I just tried to tell them what I knew that would help them be successful.”
Dameron, who was previously stationed in Oklahoma City, has participated in programs to read to elementary school kids and dressed up as Santa for his daughter’s class.
After coming to JBAB last February, he looked for ways to give back to the local area’s struggling kids looking for guidance. Last year, as part of the Area Coalitions for Education-Excellence (ACE-E) mentoring program, he was paired with a Hart Middle School student named Romel.
Romel, who he said has a passion for drawing, was unsure of where that could take him in life. Dameron wanted to show him the different potential avenues he could take if he works hard and stays focused. He was able to get Romel drawing supplies and help him set an academic goal of 3.0. A goal he was able to reach last year.
“We all have more potential than we realize,” he said. “Sometimes it just takes another person to help us realize that potential.”
“I tried to tell him, don’t go to school to just be cool and fit in,” he said. “Go to school to get your education.”
Dameron is now involved with the JBAB Joint Unit Mentoring Program (JUMP!). The program pairs military members with local elementary and middle school kids. He said JUMP! is looking for motivated individuals with diverse backgrounds to come in and help the kids.
“Everybody needs mentoring,” he said. “That is why I want different people on board because everybody can contribute. All you have to do is have passion.”
He hopes the program will eventually get enough volunteers to include some of the local high schools.
“Mentoring is something that is continuous,” he said. “You don’t just need mentoring in elementary school or middle school. You’re going to need it through all phases of your life.”
Dameron, who is working on his bachelor’s degree in social work, is looking into starting his own nonprofit organization with his sister to help young kids looking for guidance. For now, he will be helping with JUMP! which allows him to do what makes him happy.
“I wish I would have had a mentor growing up,” he said. “I feel JUMP! is a platform for me to do what I am passionate about doing, which is helping people,” he said.
For more information on JUMP! email William.h.dameron.mil@mail.mil or call 202-404-5865.
| Date Taken: | 09.04.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 03.08.2016 22:24 |
| Story ID: | 191664 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING, DC, US |
| Hometown: | HINESVILLE, GA, US |
| Web Views: | 244 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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