349th commander nominated to receive prestigious award

Published Sept. 5, 2014
By Airman 1st Class John Linzmeier
22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. -- A commander here received a nomination for one of the Air Force's most prestigious awards, the 2013 Lance P. Sijan Leadership Award.

Lt. Col. Stephen Matthews, 349th Air Refueling Squadron commander, was selected as Air Mobility Command's nomination for the Sijan Award by demonstrating the high qualities of leadership in the performance of his duties and personal life.

"It's a humbling honor to be nominated, but this is not just about me and my efforts alone," he said. "When it boils down to it, it's the efforts of all the folks I worked with over the past year. I was just lucky to be able to lead them."

The Lance P. Sijan award was created in 1981, in honor of the first U.S. Air Force Academy graduate to receive the Medal of Honor.

Matthews said he admired the story of Lance P. Sijan since he first heard it at the Air Force Academy. He spent his cadet years living in Sijan Hall, a dorm building also named after the war hero, who was a POW during the Vietnam War.

Under Matthews' leadership, the 349th ARS safely executed more than 480 sorties and 2,300 flight hours, led several top priority missions including air refueling support to the strategic airdrop of 400 United States and Thai troops in support of Exercise COBRA GOLD, and 18th Air Force first forward located tanker alert force generation in support of Exercise GLOBAL THUNDER.

Throughout his career, Matthews sought guidance from a few words-of-wisdom displayed above his desk. They read:

Ego is a liability.
Care about what you're doing.
Effort, honesty and respect.

"I learned those from a mentor I had, who was my squadron commander," said Matthews. "As a young major, he taught me the value of always giving others your best effort, always being honest and treating them with respect, and it has always worked out."

Matthews shows the same principals to each leader under his command while explaining his initial expectations. He also demonstrates them to loved ones in his personal life.

"Not only does he demonstrate the example of these principles to his sons," said Lt. Col. Monique Farness, Chief of 22nd Special Operations Air Refueling, 'but he actively works with them so that they learn the importance of them in all interactions and activities."

While Matthews said he is proud of his nomination for this award, he is still striving to accomplish another feat close to his heart - developing the next generation of leaders.

"You may not be able to change the entire Air Force, but you certainly have a tremendous influence on your little portion of the Air Force," he said. "When you empower others to do the mission, it's awesome to see how they are able to do more than what they think they can do, and that's what it's all about."