"Aim High Airmen" might be a catchy slogan to entice new recruits, but it is also a genuine perspective held and encouraged by the senior leaders of the 101st Air Refueling Wing (ARW), Bangor Air National Guard base.
Senior Master Sergeant Nikki Porter, the ARW’s current Human Resource Advisor, is tasked to influence the unit’s culture and motivate airmen to leave a lasting legacy. At 21 years old, her enlisted career began as a search for structure and sense of belonging. “I was searching for a family, a society, and culture to be a part of, to belong to something,” Senior Master Sgt Porter shares. As she advanced through her military career in medical administration, she seized the opportunity to utilize the educational benefits offered by the Air National Guard and earned a nursing degree. Her initial career field did not quite satisfy her military ambitions. She admitted, “The job wasn’t fit for me, I wasn’t fit for the job.” With the encouragement of her peers and mentor, she said yes to opportunities outside of her organization and was selected as a First Sergeant, and later as the Human Resource Advisor.
“I am so happy to be here and I have the best job in the Air Force.” Porter proudly boasts. Now as she serves in senior enlisted leadership, Porter is channeling her gifts and making people her business. Her own experiences serve as a reminder of the luxuries and opportunities the ANG has to offer and helps her fosters connection with her Airmen. Porter encourages her Airmen of the 101st to keep an open mind, say yes to opportunities, seek mentorship, and be willing to change careers. She evokes a sense of pride in their diverse backgrounds, “The biggest thing I’m excited about is the diversity of the National Guard; the gifts, backgrounds, insights, that all of us bring to the fight. The wealth of experience.”
It is evident that 101st ARW is a collaborative team that not only works together to achieve mission success but recognizes that it is every Airman’s responsibility to celebrate people and amplify each other’s strengths. With leaders and Airmen like Senior Master Sergeant Porter, their team won’t only fly high- but fly, fight and win!
| Date Taken: | 01.22.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 01.22.2026 15:19 |
| Story ID: | 556551 |
| Location: | US |
| Hometown: | BANGOR, MAINE, US |
| Web Views: | 62 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 101 ARW Airmen Aim High, by MSgt Kayla Catell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
