314 TRS celebrates AF heritage at Ft. Huachuca

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Stephen Musal
  • Public Affairs
It came into being surrounded by Soldiers, new and perhaps unknown before its birth. It represented a tradition of air power dating back well before World War II, and was the sum of the struggles of the Airmen who dared to create it.

While that statement could easily refer to the U.S. Air Force itself, which turned 60 years old Sept. 18, what's actually described is the Fort Huachuca, Ariz., Air Force Ball, held Sept. 7 and brought about by the members of the 314th Training Squadron.

"Our main goal was to get the Air Force blue out there and spread the word that the Air Force is celebrating its 60th Anniversary," said Tech. Sgt. Dwight Bechel, a physical intelligence instructor with the 314 TRS and one of the event coordinators. "It helped that this was something new, something fresh that Fort Huachuca hadn't seen before, so the Army was excited about helping us out."

One hundred and forty-one guests attended the ball, which was open to the entire base community. Guests included active-duty Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines as well as retired military members, base civilians and members of the Sierra Vista, Ariz., community including the mayor.

According to Sergeant Bechel, an Air Force Ball tradition is to have the oldest and youngest Airmen cut the cake. This Air Force Ball kept to the tradition with a small variation.

"We had the Airman with the oldest enlistment date and the Airman with the most recent enlistment date cut the cake," Sergeant Bechel said. "Our oldest enlistee joined May 3, 1948." The instructor added that heritage played a large role in this year's Air Force Ball.

"It was great to have the retirees at the ball, to hear their war stories and show them that they are just as important now as they were when they wore the uniform," Sergeant Bechel said.

The guest speaker for the event was Col. Scott Bethel, deputy director of intelligence and air, space and information operations for technical training at Air Education and Training Command and a former 17th Training Wing commander.

Sergeant Bechel added that the challenge of having an Air Force Ball on an Army installation was met by the entire force of 17 permanent staff members in the 314 TRS.

"We had a lot of help, and everyone had to pitch in," he said. "Army public affairs here was also a huge help, as was protocol," he said. "We also had a good team of Airmen," the sergeant added. "Our commander, Maj. (Lance) Orr; our first sergeant, Master Sgt. Eric McCullough, and Senior Airman Kristal Coleman were all a big help," he said.

"Airman Coleman was the linchpin, able to take care of a lot of the little things that had to be done," Sergeant Bechel said. "This was her first event, and she acted like a true professional."