Unit donates flags, time to adopted school

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DAVIS-MONTHAN --  Members of the base honor guard here raised a flag at the Southside Community School in Tucson, Ariz., in a ceremony Aug. 16.

To kick off the school year, the 25th Operational Weather Squadron donated an all-purpose American flag and 14 individual classroom American flags to the school. The flag replaced one the school had on its flagpole when it first opened in 2001. That flag had been destroyed by inclement weather, and the school was unable to procure a new one, said Caroline Johnson, Southside Community School principal.

During the 2003 school year, the 25th OWS began a continuing mentorship program with Southside Community providing military volunteers as teacher assistants.

The volunteers help the teachers with their daily instruction and serve as role models to the children, said Master Sgt. Ronald Richards, 25th OWS NCO in charge of East region operations.

We do this because we want to give something back to the community, said Lt. Col. Vicki Michetti, 25th OWS commander. The community has been very supportive of D-M and the Air Force mission, so when we saw this opportunity to help out Tucson, we took it.

Our kids are enthralled with the uniform, Ms. Johnson said. The kids look forward to their visits so much. The students memorize the dates the Airmen are coming and always remind me.

Shortly after the program began, the squadron volunteers noticed there was no flag on the schools flagpole. With help from the D-M First Sergeants Council and the D-M Chiefs Group, the squadron was able to gather enough funds to purchase the flags.

The additional classroom flags were purchased so students could display their pride, Sergeant Richards said. The students started each day by saying The Pledge of Allegiance but didnt have a flag to reflect upon as they were reciting it.

This is just one example of how the Armed Forces is capable, willing and enjoys helping out in the communities we protect, said Sergeant Richards. We enjoy giving back to the community that supports us. It is sometimes hard for children to understand the world events. We like to give the children a chance to interact with troops like they see and hear about on the news, let them ask questions and learn about why we are so dedicated to protecting our beloved country.