Photo By Staff Sgt. Preston Cherry | Airmen participating in Spangdahlem's Eifel Pride Program search for trash during a...... read more read more
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The 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron is combining Spangdahlem’s priority of taking care of Airmen with the essential task of keeping the base in tip-top shape using their newly redesigned Eifel Pride program which began June 19, 2017 at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany.
Eifel Pride helps improve base appearance while also helping Spangdahlem’s first-term Airmen to in-process and become better familiar with their new duty station.
Under the new restructure, Airmen attend the two week program prior to entering the newly overhauled First Term Airmen Course. Previously, Airmen were first arriving on location were put into FTAC where time to complete in-processing was constrained.
Master Sgt. Michael Benoit, 52nd Civil Engineer Squadron operations engineering superintendent, said during in-processing, Airmen are required to complete numerous appointments, approximately 15 computer based trainings, and newcomers and sexual assault prevention briefings.
“If it wasn’t for the program they would be trying to complete these tasks at their job,” said Staff Sgt. Randall Saylor, 52nd CES Eifel Pride instructor.
Saylor said with CBTs adding up to nearly 30 hours alone, as well as the time it takes away from supervisors chauffeuring the new Airmen to their appointments around base, you can really start to see the value in it.
“Me personally, I would really want to focus on learning my job,” said Airman 1st Class Marco Paez, 52nd Communications Squadron client systems technician. “It’d be hard to that do when you have to go to all of these appointments. Eifel Pride gives you two weeks to knock all that stuff out so you have nothing else to worry about except your job.”
In between CBTs and appointments, Eifel Pride members are tasked with beautifying the base. Airmen walk in groups on designated routes to clean up trash and debris.
“It gives Airman a dedicated time to learn the base; to get familiar with it,” Saylor said. “Now they know where the housing office is, or where to get a passport at.”
In addition to helping Airmen adjust to their new home, the program makes sense financially.
Benoit said having Airmen participate in the beautification process instead of hiring contractors saves Spangdahlem nearly $100,000 a year
Benoit said during free time members get a chance to have leadership roles while volunteering for different base organizations, but what is even more beneficial is what the program instills in the Airmen.
“We wanted to add that pride piece back,” said Benoit. “It’s not just picking up trash. What you’re doing is making that place where you work and live beautiful.
| Date Taken: | 07.14.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 07.17.2017 10:26 |
| Story ID: | 241402 |
| Location: | SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, RHEINLAND-PFALZ, DE |
| Web Views: | 45 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 52nd CES teaches pride to new Airmen in the Eifel, by SSgt Preston Cherry, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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