No way to thank you enough!

  • Published
  • By Nick Stubbs
  • Thunderbolt editor
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Thanksgiving is a time to take stock, to recognize, appreciate and be grateful for the things we have.

It also is a time for family, and in the case of MacDill Air Force Base that includes the extended family that is the Tampa Bay community. Its support of MacDill is nothing short of stellar, boosting morale among service members, improving education for MacDill's children, promoting health and safety, strengthening families, and fostering good will all around.

The challenge of giving thanks to the Tampa Bay community is that it's difficult to know where to begin, and even harder to say where the support ends, say MacDill members like Liz Waters, director of the Airman & Family Readiness Center. It also is important to recognize how important that support is to helping Team MacDill accomplish its many missions. In that sense, the support of Tampa Bay is contributing to the freedom and security of the nation.

"The partnership we have between our military and civilian communities is vital for mission effectiveness," said Waters. "When our military families feel supported and connected, the active duty member has peace of mind whether they are at home or deployed."

And that support is not a flash in the pan. Operations tempo may have slowed with the wind-down in Iraq, but "Year after year the support from our community grows larger and stronger, Waters said. "The type of support and encouragement the city of Tampa provides our base community is simply unmatched."

The most recent example of the community stepping up was when pro football player Vincent Jackson partnered with the A&FRC to support the reintegration program, offering tickets for every home game and team shirts to 24 members returning from deployment.

Direct support of military members is only half of the picture. The Tampa Bay community is keenly aware of the importance of supporting military families, and particularly children. It was that concern that led a local attorney and his firm to raise $20,000 to set up the Junior Student 2 Student program in Hillsborough County Schools. A new-student welcoming and familiarization process conducted by trained students at each school, S2S aims to ease the process of adjusting to a new environment for children of military families transferring into four Hillsborough middle schools and one high school. Plans are to expand the program to other schools, said Nelly Richards, MacDill's school liaison officer.

"Programs like this might not be possible" without the community stepping up to help make it happen, said Richards, who said the $20,000 raised by community leaders led to a matching grant.

The initiative also illustrates how MacDill community relations lead to improvements that have a positive impact beyond military members and families. Student 2 Student isn't limited to orienting military children, but all children transferring into a new school, said Richards.

Another recent example of community support for MacDill is the completion of a new playground erected last week at Chevron Park, a residential neighborhood of MacDill. With the support of a local bank in partnership with a non-profit organization that builds playgrounds around the country, was able to support MacDill children and families while furthering its goal to bring a "playground within walking distance of every child in America."

The many commercial sponsorships from the community are vital to the work of the 6th Force Support Squadron, said Wendy Foster, 6th FSS marketing director. Dozens of commercial enterprises assist MacDill with helpful programs, morale-boosting activities and other support for military members and their families, she said.

"MacDill is fortunate to have tremendous support from the Tampa Bay community in many areas including commercial sponsorship, donations and in-kind support to our basewide morale, recreation and welfare events which benefit our military and their families," said Foster. "Events such as these are crucial to the resiliency of our service members, their dedication to the mission, their families, and their general overall well-being as they support our country.

"The helpfulness and concern our community shows in taking care of our people is truly something to be thankful for this holiday season."

While the money donated or raised by businesses is a big part of local support for MacDill, it's not just business leaders who support the base, and many organizations and groups are involved, many of them longtime friends of the base dating back to MacDill's beginnings. Another great example of group and club support is the annual MacDill Holiday Dinner, a free early Thanksgiving dinner for active-duty members and families, held Nov. 15 this year.

The message from Team MacDill is strong this holiday season: For all you do, "thank you."