Comprehensive Airman Fitness: McConnell AFB members 'reach out' through physical fitness, continue CAF culture building

Published March 22, 2011
By Airman 1st Class Armando A. Schwier-Morales
22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. -- Ten seconds left. Five seconds, push, push," said the fitness assessment cell member with a booming voice.

Adrenaline pumping, Airmen regularly push a little harder to get those last few points of their Air Force fitness test as the time winds down. In this case, however, the fitness assessment cell member wasn't counting for an Airman, but for fellow Kansan community fitness leaders.

McConnell hosted a "fitness outreach" lunch March 9 for 30 Airmen and community leaders. The event was part of McConnell's outreach lunches that strive to connect leadership with local community partners.

"We host outreach lunches to get to know community leaders who share many of our goals and challenges," said Mrs. Sharon Hamric, 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs community relations chief. "Discussing issues and success stories face-to-face gives our civilian counterparts a personal look at who we are, what we're doing here and where we're going, as well as how their tax dollars are being used."

Many fruitful connections, including professional training collaboration, have been initiated at these outreach lunches, said Mrs. Hamric.

The community participants got a glimpse of the Air Force world and its fitness culture during a tour of McConnell's health and wellness center, gym and other fitness facilities.

"It's important that we engage professionally with city leaders and our partners in the fitness and wellness community of Wichita, Kan." said Mr. Lou Stadler, 22nd Medical Group HAWC director. "Our perspective is unique in that we deal with a captive military clientele, unlike our partners downtown."

Alongside some of McConnell's leading fitness Airmen, Mrs. Trina Bauer, City of Derby recreation director, took on the physical fitness test.

"After taking the Air Force physical fitness test I feel I have a better appreciation of the physical requirements that Airmen must have," Mrs. Bauer said. "There are many other professions that require personnel to be physically fit, such as firemen and police officers. But I believe all organizations should have testing criteria similar to the Air Force. Not only because of the testing itself, but the follow up after the initial test and the support given to Airmen to help them reach their fitness goals and achieve higher standards."

At the end of the day, several community leaders got a taste of the Air Force's fitness culture, connected with wing leadership and improved the community, said many of the participants. However, the fitness lunch is just one of several lunches planned for the remainder of the year bringing industry, medical and many more leaders to experience the Air Force mission.

"Sharing challenges and successes with our community counterparts will ultimately strengthen our relationship and create a more sound and effective fitness and wellness environment in Wichita," said Mr. Stadler.

In addition to creating better community partnerships, McConnell AFB's outreach lunches also support Air Mobility Command's Comprehensive Airman Fitness culture that began in July 2010.

Comprehensive Airman Fitness, or CAF, is built on "four pillars" of fitness -- physical, social, mental and spiritual fitness -- and five "Cs" -- caring, committing, communicating, connecting and celebrating. McConnell's outreach lunches not only support the "physical" fitness pillar but also the social pillar as well.

McConnell AFB's efforts to build on the CAF culture is an on-going effort. According to a report from the 22nd ARW, there have been many recent success stories of people taking care of people at McConnell AFB.

Those success stories include:

-- A family hosted an Airman, his wife and three children -- who were spending their first Christmas away from parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles -- for a Christmas dinner and afternoon of holiday fun in December 2010.

-- A wife of an Airman provided home-cooked meals to various families who were going through transitions to include a family where a spouse started law school, a family of an Airman who had surgery, and various families who just moved into base housing.

-- Four Airmen from the 22nd Medical Group spent a "cold Saturday morning and afternoon" assisting another Airman and family move from an apartment and into their home on base.

-- A security forces Airman at McConnell stayed up until midnight helping the fiancé of a deployed security forces member serving in Iraq prepare for a road trip to her hometown. This Airman helped load up a trailer with some of her personal belongings, and checked over her vehicle to make sure it was safe to drive to Florida before she drove down there to be with her mom during her fiancé's deployment.

"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 in June 2010 while addressing CAF to AMC wing commanders. "It's not another program, but rather, a means to enhance mission effectiveness by intentionally investing in one another."

(Master Sgt. Scott T. Sturkol, Air Mobility Command Public Affairs, contributed to this report.)