MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- MacDill Air Force Base helped lay the foundation for James Roy, who began as an Airman Basic and rose to become the 16th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force. Roy returned to MacDill after 43 years to mentor chief master sergeant selectees and develop Airmen across the enlisted force.
Roy spent time reconnecting with the base and its Airmen during his visit. He mentored the chief selects in addition to other leadership Airmen courses, met with leadership across MacDill and revisited his old stomping grounds at the 6th Civil Engineer Squadron.
In 1983, Roy arrived at MacDill fresh out of technical training as a 3E2X1, pavement and construction equipment Airman, or “dirt boy.” Roy’s first supervisor, Technical Sgt. Nathan Heard, helped shape his development as an Airman and played a key role in the leader he would later become as the 16th CMSAF.
"My family only had one vehicle, and Ms. Paula needed it for work,” said Roy recalling when he first began his career at MacDill. “Sgt. Heard picked me up each day so I could get to work. I’ve always been grateful to Sgt. Heard for taking care of his Airmen, helping my family get settled, and making sure I was mission ready and focused.”
That level of care and accountability left a lasting impression on Roy.
“We all had the same supervisor who held us to the same standard,” said Roy. “That is who I am today.”
The Air Force has changed a lot in four decades but there are some things that never change.
“The Airmen that are assigned here, just like when I was here in 1983, are mission focused,” said Roy. “[MacDill is a] strategically important base to our nation and it’s the people and Airmen that support everybody else here that make it.”
Once a “dirt boy” at MacDill, Roy returned with a different mission: to help develop the next generation of Airmen by reinforcing the lessons that carried him to the Air Force’s highest enlisted rank.