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In a surprise celebration in late October, Lt. Col. Christian Cheetham, a teacher and Air Force Junior ROTC leader at Alvirne High School in Hudson, N.H., was named the 2023 Teacher of the Year for the state of New Hampshire. A former intelligence officer while on Active-duty, Cheetham now teaches science in addition to leading the AFJROTC program, and in his application essay, he wrote that he strives “every day to bring the humanity back. … In my opinion, our students are desperate for real mentoring relationships.” Cheetham is now in the running for National Teacher of the Year.
Staff Sgt. Cristopher Veach, an instructor loadmaster with the 415th Special Operations Squadron at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., was honored by the Airlift/Tanker Association in October with its Gen. Robert “Dutch” Huyser Award for loadmasters, for sustained excellence in Airmanship. As an instructor, He ensures future loadmasters are prepared for evaluations. He has served as lead loadmaster for numerous operations and was previously selected as deployed operations superintendent role for the 79th Rescue Squadron. He also completed his Community College of the Air Force associates degree while deployed.
After 10 years and six races, Maj. Gen. David Smith, director of Air Force Reserve Plans, Programs and Requirements, finally made it to the Ironman World Championship race in Kona, Hawaii, in October. Ironman triathlons consist of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and 26.2-mile run. Only 6 percent of participants worldwide qualify for the World Championships. Smith first began participating in Ironman triathlons in 2012 and said the same qualities that help people complete the grueling races are those the Air Force looks for in leaders: resilience, dedication, time management, and goal-setting.
For the first time ever this past October, the Royal Thai Air Force Air Command and Staff College admitted women—including USAF Maj. Jessica Padoemthontaweekij. As an intelligence officer, she will be joined by five female RTAF officers after the Department of the Air Force conducted a review of gender-specific policies led by undersecretary Gina Ortiz Jones and identified the RTAF ACSC as an opportunity to promote equal opportunities for female Airmen and Guardians, after previously only sending men to the college for Professional Military Education.
Staff Sgt. Kristen Witherspoon, a member of the 890th Missile Security Operations Squadron at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyo., became just the second woman to join the base’s 90th MSOS Tactical Response Force. The TRF at Warren is the quick-reaction force for convoys and base emergencies, also conducting armed air patrols over the base’s 9,600 square-mile field of ICBM missile silos. In order to join the TRF, Witherspoon passed a baseline test of running an 800-meter sprint, dragging a 150-pound mannequin 50 meters, performing five or more dead hang pull-ups, climbing a 14-foot rope, and rucking four miles.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Lt. Col. Richard Paul Mastalerz II of the Connecticut Air National Guard was diagnosed with Stage 3 colorectal cancer after doctors discovered a tumor in his large intestine. A United Airlines pilot who volunteered to fly C-130s full-time when the pandemic decreased air traffic, Mastalerz stayed on as commander of the 118th Airlift Squadron while undergoing treatment. After 18 months, eight rounds of chemotherapy, 28 rounds of radiation therapy, and a six hour-long surgery, Mastalerz was declared cancer free.
(L-r): Lydia Brown (Youth 6-8) of Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho; Layne Knowles (Youth 9-12) of Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash.; and Rylan Jack Mims (Youth 13-17) of Joint Base Charleston, S.C., each won first place in their respective Youth categories in the Department of the Air Force’s 2022 Photo Contest, while Jackie Lundgren from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo., and Grace Hong from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, won the Adult Novice and Adult Accomplished categories, respectively.
More than 400 photographers submitted work to the competition, the theme of which was “Celebrating Traditions” for the Air Force’s 75th birthday, encouraging photographers to share their family and cultural traditions. A panel of three judges evaluated the entries and awarded first, second, and third prizes in five categories
The Tampa Bay Defense Alliance recently honored Larry Wilson—chairman, president, and CEO of First Arkansas Bank & Trust—with its Tampa Bay Trophy, given to a civic leader whose lifetime achievement and distinguished service to the Air Force and Air Mobility Command epitomizes the cooperation between civilian and military communities. Wilson has fostered relations between Little Rock Air Force Base and Jacksonville, Ark., for decades and has championed state-level legislation that provides Active duty and retired pay income tax exemptions for military personnel in Arkansas.
Florida Air National Guard Maj. Bradley J. Vaughn was headed through Florida with his family on Oct. 9, when they encountered a house on fire. Vaughn’s reactions helped an elderly woman in the yard to safety and U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer 5 Nigel P. Huebscher was assisting an elderly man out of the house. As the two stumbled out of the house and into the yard, an explosion rocked the house, and Vaughn run back in to help pull the elderly man out. “Watching Vaughn go into that fire was probably the bravest thing I’ve ever seen,” Huebscher said.