Fairchild Remotivation Flight closing their doors

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Christie Putz
  • 92nd ARW Public Affairs
Soon dust will gather on the now pristine floors of one base building. The chrome will slowly lose its shine, and one final turn of the key will leave the building uninhabited.

The only thing remaining the same after the closure of the 92nd Mission Support Squadron Remotivational Flight will be the echoing silence that fills the building's sterile halls.

The final person, referred to as a candidate, to come through Fairchild's month-long remotivation program graduated Sept. 28.

"The remotivation program allowed Airmen to see that their actions impact more than themselves, including their family, co-workers and mission," said Tech. Sgt. Troy Hayden, 92nd MSS Remotivational Flight NCOIC. "It opens their eyes to the bigger picture."

Sergeant Hayden and his cadre accomplished this through a very structured environment where every action was planned in advance and aimed at bettering the Airman in some way.

"I've heard it compared to basic training times a hundred," he said.

Candidates were expected to learn about Air Force heritage, the code of ethics and other basic military education. Standing at attention in front of Sergeant Hayden's desk, the candidates then recited their answers to demonstrate their knowledge of the material.

This was one of the few times that they were able to speak during their 30 days.

"The solitude was one of the hardest parts of the program," said Sergeant Hayden. "In basic training you always had someone there to lean on, whether it was someone who could fold shirts better than you or make perfect beds, but here it was just them."

In addition to the academic material, candidates learned the value of service by completing several projects around base. Included in the list was the installation of new shelving inside the base library, raking of new sand at the child development center and helping set up for wing functions.

"The people who came through here were not bad people, they were just going down the wrong path, and we were here to help guide them," said Master Sgt. Daniel Dodd, 92nd Mission Support Squadron career advisor.

Sergeant Dodd spent the last five years of his military career helping these Airmen, and continued to help oversee the program even when transitioning to his new career.

He has seen Airmen from several bases come through Fairchild's program, including McChord Air Force Base, Wash., Grand Forks AFB, N.D., Travis AFB, Calif., and Fort Lewis, Wash.

Since the program's beginning in the summer of 2001, more than 220 candidates have graduated from Fairchild. Of that number, 78 percent of candidates graduated and went back to their units.

Eighty-two percent of graduates were still on active-duty 12 months later.

"I've seen a lot of good Airmen come out of here," Sergeant Dodd said.

In fact, he even keeps in contact with some of them.

"I've received quite a few emails from people who have been through the program," he said. "Some of them even thank me and tell me how this was a turning point in their lives.

"That kind of recognition is better than any achievement medal or award I could ever receive," Sergeant Dodd said.

Sergeant Hayden's proudest moment was being coined by a McChord chief for the dramatic changes he saw in Airmen who had recently returned from Fairchild.

"Three out of four of them went back to their base and became involved in squadron functions, booster clubs and other unit activities," he said. "They had completely turned around."

Sergeant Hayden and Sergeant Dodd say they will both look back on their times with the 92nd MSS Remotivational Flight and be proud of the way they were able to help so many people.

"I hate to see it go," Sergeant Dodd said. "I would like to think that sometime down the road it will come back, but that'll probably be long after I retire."