Comprehensive Airman Fitness: AMC sponsors command-wide leadership training for youth coordinators

Published Oct. 1, 2010
By Master Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol
Air Mobility Command Public Affairs

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Thirty-one youth coordinators from across all Air Mobility Command bases were part of a week-long Boys and Girls Clubs of America advanced leadership training opportunity Sept. 20-24 here.

The training, sponsored by Headquarters AMC, was led by Mr. Ed Brown, director of military outreach for BGCA. Ms. Susan Long, child and youth specialist for AMC, said this effort falls in line with AMC's commitment to Comprehensive Airman Fitness, or CAF.

CAF is framework that allows AMC to focus its efforts to strengthen the resiliency of Airmen and their families by providing for their physical, mental, spiritual and social fitness, officials said. The intent is to create and sustain a way of life across AMC that gives Airmen and their families a sense of belonging to the Air Force community, in which they live, work and play.

"This training will provide key youth leadership personnel across the command the tools they need to help improve programs at AMC youth and teen centers," Ms. Long said, "which in turn will have a positive impact overall for our Airmen and their families."

Mr. Brown described the goal of the advanced leadership training and what it encompassed.

"The advanced leadership program is designed to help youth and teen centers, for example, to move their programs from just being good to being great," said Mr. Brown, who traveled from BGCA's national headquarters in Atlanta, Ga. "We asked every (participant) to take a look at their programs before coming here. We asked them to assess their center and determine what things they could do to move it from a good to great youth center that attracts every (youth) on the base to want to participate in the programs."

Each participant arrived with a project that was approved by their supervisor, said Mr. Brown, who has been with BGCA for more than 30 years, of which he's spent almost 20 years supporting military children. During the training they learn how to advance their project into fruition where the end result is hopefully the growth from "good to great" programs.

"This (leadership) program doesn't end when they leave our training session here," Mr. Brown said. "We have eight weeks of work ahead of us."

After their week-long session here in Illinois, Mr. Brown said he will maintain contact with all of the participants to further coordinate their projects.

"I will be setting up conference calls and sending them forms to fill out to tell me where they are at with their projects," Mr. Brown said. "I say eight weeks, but really this is an on-going process and we'll work together for however many weeks it takes. It's a constant follow-up. We want to see change and we want them to be successful."

Mr. Jake Lindquist, teen coordinator for the 319th Force Support Squadron's youth center at Grand Forks AFB, N.D., said the training for him and those attending bring a renewed focus on BGCA programs in AMC youth centers.

"What we're learning is how to bring Boys and Girls Club programs back to the youth center and to be able to serve military families better," Mr. Lindquist said. "Quite frankly, this goes back to when the Airmen are deployed - they'll know their children are being taken care of."

Mr. Lindquist also said the training provided an opportunity for networking. "The one thing that is great about this training is meeting people from other AMC bases and youth centers," he said. "It offered an opportunity for us all to get on the same page."

Additionally, using teens as an example, Mr. Lindquist said a teenager can go from one AMC base to another and have virtually the same programs available to them. This training helps enhance that networking between bases and to further opportunities for family members.

"My personal goal from this is to increase teen participation on base," Mr. Lindquist said. "A lot of parents don't know there are a lot of opportunities for teens to get their college paid for through participation in our programs. My main goal is to make families aware of the opportunities they do have - that's nationwide and not just at Grand Forks."

Mr. Steve Stutts, a school-age program assistant with the 6th FSS from MacDill AFB, Fla., said his project, to improve the Fit Factor program at the MacDill youth facilities, should get a jump start thanks to this training.

"I've gained not only a lot of great ideas to further improve the Fit Factor program, but also I've learned how to be a better leader with the staff and the program," Mr. Stutts said. "My goal is to take our Fit Factor program and grow it from a school-age program to one that supports children of all ages and abilities."

Comprehensive Airman Fitness began July 1 at AMC. Officials said CAF is not a program, "but an approach to better equip Airmen and their families to deal with difficulty in their daily lives."

"Comprehensive Airman Fitness reflects our commitment to developing a holistic approach to caring for our people that equips, enables and empowers everyone to grow more physically, socially, mentally and spiritually fit," Gen. Raymond E. Johns, Jr., AMC commander said. "It's not another program, but rather, a means to enhance mission effectiveness by intentionally investing in one another."

For Mr. Stutts, participating in the BGCA training reflects General Johns' words of "investing in one another."

"We're all here for the children and the families," Mr. Stutts said. "We came here to make things better for them."