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Show H: u i P" t ' i & i I & V i V j ; A 1 i ' f ) 1 i ? If, X V r ,- - V - if o? :'(: iv tv flu v y ) & ,v l w 3 i n - .LL K.yi. vyS sUt jf' fA V rn w ' X vjK,K,y,, iiVHTrf X f Photo by Staff Sgt Brian Bahret Senior Airman Chad Kendrick, 388th EMS aerospace ground equipment floor supervisor, inspects a gas turbine generator gaskets for leaks. By Staff Sgt. Brian Bahret by your first base. Have an open mind; see whats out 388th Fighter Wing Public Affairs there, he advised. Second opinion considering separating from the Air must carefully weigh the pros and cons Senior Airman Brian Sadler, 388th Equipment Mainteemployment, suggests an airman nance Squadron munitions accounts manager, separated from the Air Force after the Air Force to complete his college degree. Shortly after several months ago. leaving the military, he married. He was separated from Whether youre thinking about separating because of the Air Force for three years before he returned to active duty. a negative experience in your first few years or Airman Sadler began working in construction to make you want more time to attend school, you should carefully ends meet, but his college hopes faded quickly. Working as consider the decision to separate, said Senior Airman Chad a civilian, he had less time to attend college. Kendrick, 388th Equipment Maintenance Squadron aeroHe said airmen with no college or bills should stay in. As space ground equipment floor supervisor. a senior airman you make $12.50 an hour, said Airman Avenues are available to help airmen educate themselves Sadler. He said few jobs pay as well, give as many days off on whether to stay in or get out, said Master Sgt. Joseph and give the same benefits the Air Force does. Jennings, career assistant advisor. Supervisor, commander, Theres no comparison, said Airman Sadler. As a civilmilitary personnel flight, and the career assistant advisor ian you have to work six months to a year before you get any are available to offer advice, but personal experience is often medical or dental plan.Tricare might not be perfect, but at the best tool for airmen considering separating. ; income the military provided, Airman Kendrick left the Air least its something. , AJ.unior RQTCcadef in high schawl '4'irmaq Force May 30, 1999. With a wife and two childrenthicfeci- first day bdfck ;was fa;ntastic;' said Airman Sadler. Kendricjc the Air Force in his sion cVoti Wtmt get as life. was difficult to make. My wife wanted me to stay in, He said sampled lifestyle early good a job as the military. he knew from the start that he wanted the structured lifestyle he said. But something had to change. Most airmen agree that money isnt a large factor in the Air Force offers and the satisfaction that hes providtheir decision to stay in or separate, but Sergeant Jennings a service to his ing country. After separating, Airman Kendrick began working said money is an important consideration on the outside. Sit Five days after graduating high school, plane tickets in down and compare what youre making now to the bills for a business owner installing air youd hand, Airman Kendrick was bound for basic training at Z private conditioning to have on the outside. The are pay figures homes- - He sa,d fhe :ywas surprising. as a c,v,1'- Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. Following the six weeks ?ySte.mS m As the career assistant advisor, Sergeant Jennings is availmabe S at Lackland and six months at Sheppard AFB, Texas, for 'on8erchours able to offer advice to airmen considering separating from when ,n ws he ".d? Plus, technical school, he began working at Dyess AFB, Texas, the Air Force. If (airmen) are not happy. Ill show them said, the benefits were not there as an aerospace ground equipment technician. whats available, he said. He added that airmen often dont In the civilian work force people dont get Airman Kendrick enjoyed all the opportunities that are available to them. know paid vacation, he said, adding his first several months on the He said the bottom line is the military cant afford to conthat holidays off were just a job. Itwasntajob,hesaidr tinue losing troops. The military focuses on the solder, dream. He said if youre lucky, I (worked) because I wanted airman, sailor and Marine, he said. We cant dictate foryou start out with two weeks to. He said the knowledge vacation a year. It takes most eign policy or the will of the nation without them. that he was helping keep the people years to aircraft in the air motivated it. more than that. get him. He added that he earned Paid training was another working Senior Airman Chad Kendrick luxury Airman Kendrick never , towards the countrys defense. 388th Maintenance Squadron AGE flight considered. While his boss It was more than a year into trained him on installing air con his enlistment when Airman Kendrick began doubting his Airman Kendrick was never paid for the training commitment to the Air Force. His job became stagnant, his ditioning, and he had to do it on his time off. In the Air Force, youre coworkers constantly complained about their assignment often sent TDY to train, he said. and he felt his supervision treated him poorly. However, Training completed, he began installing air conditionhe said, he still liked what the Air Force had to offer. He units. He said homeowners usually didnt show much ing enjoyed the opportunity to travel, the steady pay check and appreciation for his work. People dont want you to take military benefits. a smoke break or get lunch, all they care about is that their ' air conditioner is working. t At Dyess, Airman Kendrick worked for AGE deliverAlthough the lack of gratitude didnt bother him, he the to a After felt like there was something missing. I did the job and ing equipment flightline. year, he wanted a challenge; his desire was to learn other aspects of his went home, he said. There was no in So he asked his to him He to in move the floor the while that, he Air knew he was said, job. supervisors Force, to put his technical school training to the test by repairdofng a job with some meaning - he was working towards ing equipment. He said his supervisors didnt give him the defense of his country. the chance he was looking for. They said there were not Aside from the knowledge that his work was serving a in to the enough people shop rotate him off the line. greater purpose, he said, in the military he had job secuDuring his first enlistment. Airmen Kendrick deployed rity and knew his basic needs were going to be met. He to Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia. When he returned had a roof over his head, clothes on his back and medfrom the temporary duty, he noticed his coworkers negaical care covering his entire family. tive attitudes. The people (I worked with) didnt have a He said the Air Force taught him to work smarter, not he said. harder. be to want there. didnt Thats why he decided to attitude, good after only They just He tried to retrain, but said he wasnt allowed the opporsix months as a civilian. The grass is always greener tunity. Several months before separating became an issue, on the other side until you get in the yard and realize they Airman Kendrick requested a permanent change of stasprayed Roundup on it, he said. tion to another base, stateside or overseas he even volThinking back, Airman Kendrick said he didnt unteered for Korea. His requests were denied. regret separating; the decision gave him direction. Hes Master Sgt. Joseph Jennings is available for career he the and assistance. For more information, call structure, travelling Although enjoyed steady now a career airman. Dont judge your Air Force career Anyone re-join- ed irMy The price paid SJle.T' f 30-da- ys The grass is always greener until you get in the other yard and realize they sprayed roundup on self-satisfacti- two-to-thr- ee on ; Tough decision 1 self-satisfacti- on re-enl- ist Career assistance advisor 777-STA- Y. |