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“When the immigration officer asked me what I’m going to do in the U.S. I told him I’m going to join the Air Force so I can serve the United States. I felt indebted because they had liberated my country. And I wanted to pay back that debt. When he heard that he stamped my visa right away. And I did just that. I served for 20 years. Now I’m retired and I’m still continuing to serve my country.”
Benny enlisted in the Air Force less than 60 days after he arrived in Hawaii and went on to serve 20 years before retiring. He stayed in Hawaii after retirement and is now the Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam (JBPPH) Fitness Center Manager.
“Every day when I wake up I look forward to going to work because I know I’ll be training with the military and helping civilians also.”
Benny is devoted to making a positive impact on the physical fitness of service members here in the PACOM area. He works fulltime at the gym and also coordinates and directs fitness events and competitions across the island.
“A lot of time people ask me, Benny don’t you get tired of doing the same thing? I say no, I don’t. It’s my passion. I don’t think that will ever go away.”
Brae Rivera, a fitness center employee, says Benny really knows his customers and is a great boss to work for.
“He’s the foundation of this place. People love it here because Benny makes it worth being here. He knows the people here personally.”
Benny takes pride in what he does because he knows it’s making a difference in the lives of the military community.
“Our major impact is readiness. To be able to provide a facility with state-of-the-art equipment, the latest programs and be able to share this with our military community is a big factor. They are not only getting in shape for themselves, but as a country we have to have ready force to deploy. Readiness is always our number one priority.”
| Date Taken: | 04.09.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 04.17.2018 18:27 |
| Story ID: | 273417 |
| Location: | HONOLULU, HI, US |
| Web Views: | 81 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Serving In Paradise, by PO2 MARK S BRISON, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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