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    Association dedicates monument to Fightin’ Fifty-Fifth

    OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, NE, UNITED STATES

    04.12.2019

    Story by Ryan Hansen 

    55th Wing Public Affairs

    The 55th Wing Association dedicated a monument to all of the past, present and future members of the 55th Wing during a ceremony at the Omaha National Cemetery in Omaha on April 6, 2019.

    The ceremony was attended by scores of wing veterans as well as a large contingent of those currently serving in the unit.

    “I’m here to honor the past and to do that the only way I can honor the past is by honoring you,” said Joe Spivey, 55th Wing Association president and retired Air Force colonel, to those wing members, both past and present, in attendance. “You guys are the shoulders and the foundation of the Fightin’ Fifty-Fifth.”

    Also speaking at the event was Col. Michael Manion, 55th Wing commander, and Congressman Don Bacon, a retired Air Force brigadier general who served as the 55th Wing commander from March 2011 to June 2012.

    Manion echoed Spivey’s comments by referencing Isaac Newton’s famous saying, “we have seen further than others because we stand on the shoulders of giants.”

    “Like our motto, Videmus Omnia, which means we see all, today’s Airmen of the Fightin’ Fifty-Fifth see further because we stand on the shoulders of the giants in this crowd today,” he said. “The current members of the Fightin’ Fifty-Fifth charge forward with the same determination, grit, spirit and courage that has defined all generations of the 55th Wing.”

    Bacon reminisced about his time with the wing and how he worked with, and for, many of those in attendance.

    “As I sit here today, I’m just reminded that we’re a family,” he said. “I praise those who have served in the 55h Wing in the past. You had the baton and you ran hard. You ran that race beautifully.

    “And today, the current generation has the baton and they are running hard,” he continued. “Nothing can stop the 55th Wing.”

    This is the second monument the association has dedicated to the 55th Wing. The first is located at the Air Force Museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

    “As past 55th Wing Association President Jim Thomas has said, this is kind of like two bookends of our heritage,” Spivey said. “We have at monument honoring the Cold War at Wright-Patt and now we have this one…honoring the entire past, present and future of the Fightin’ Fifty-Fifth.”

    The association is a non-profit 501(C) organization comprised of veterans of the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing and retired or active duty personnel of the 55th Wing. They have members scattered across the globe.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 04.12.2019
    Date Posted: 04.23.2019 17:43
    Story ID: 319188
    Location: OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, NE, US

    Web Views: 15
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN