DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Citizen Airmen of the 307th Bomb Wing and their active-duty counterparts in the 7th BW swept 8 of 18 Air Force Global Strike Command maintenance awards here this month, including four Lt. Gen. Leo Marquez Award winners from the 489th Maintenance Squadron.
Senior Master Sgt. David Rogers, Master Sgt. Kevin Parnell, Master Sgt. Tyler Krahenbuhl, and Staff Sgt. Devaun Winslow, all assigned to the 489th MXS, earned Marquez trophies.
Marquez Awards honor maintainers who have demonstrated the highest degree of sustained job performance, knowledge, efficiency, and results at the major command level.
Rogers and Krahenbuhl credited the winning effort to the Total Force Integration climate between active duty and reserve Airmen. The 489th Bomb Group, a geographically separated unit of the 307th BW, serves with the 7th BW in a classic association.
“We are well integrated with active-duty, and it’s nice they feel they can rely on us,” said Rogers. “The active-duty members really value the experience and knowledge we bring.”
But the relationship is hardly one-sided, pointed out Krahenbuhl.
“We really appreciate their (active-duty) willingness to help us keep up with training requirements,” he said. “They recently put together a five-day combat munitions course for us, and it was some of the best training we’d ever received.”
Rogers added that 7th BW Airmen often give up weekends to help during 489th BG unit training assemblies.
Though both Rogers and Krahenbuhl’s awards were for individual achievement, neither said they view it that way. Both said the awards reflect a team effort between the reserve and active-duty maintainers at Dyess AFB.
Both also credited some of that cohesiveness to leadership within the respective units.
“I think the people we have at the group and squadron levels make it a point to stay engaged with each other, and that makes it easier to integrate,” said Krahenbuhl.