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Airmen are always appreciated

  • Published
  • By Emily Smith
  • 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  "If you look around the room you'll be able to see that there are a lot more of you than there are of me," said Col. John McDonald, 43rd Airlift Wing Commander, at the Airmen Appreciation Dinner Oct. 7. "I appreciate what you do; without you the wing could not function." 

Those were sentiments felt by all in attendance at the event. The dinner, boasting upwards of 350 people, filled the Pope Club ballroom to capacity, spilling out into the hallways and other dining areas. Airmen and their families came to enjoy dinner, raffles, and clowns for the children as well as a host of other activities. 

Among those activities was a 'musical chairs' inspired scavenger hunt. Twelve volunteers sat upon twelve chairs and had to go out into the crowd to find items like Chap Stick and recall rosters. As the seconds ticked by, chairs were removed leaving fewer and fewer contestants. The stakes got higher, the items more random and the speed of the game intensified. As the crowd cheered the final two contestants on, the winner was in such a hurry to reach the last chair she nearly fell over. It all added to the light-hearted spirit of the evening. 

Airman 1st Class Brandon Slavens became somewhat of a trend setter for the evening. Airman Slavens' raffle ticket number was the first one called of the evening. Friends at his table could hear him muttering "C'mon 756" under his breath, hoping to win. When '756' was called, the whole table erupted in cheer. 

The raffle was based off of the popular NBC television show "Deal or No Deal". Airman Slavens chose a number between one and 31, and was then handed an envelope. He had to decide, with verbal help from the crowd, whether he wanted to keep the first envelope without seeing it's contents or trade it in for another prize. 

The crowd convinced him that it was a 'no deal,' and he opted to go with another envelope, thusly winning one of 10 free smoothie tokens. Seeming somewhat dejected, his mood picked up significantly when winner after winner received free smoothies too. Eventually the crowd even starting chanting "Smoothie! Smoothie!" in hopes that everyone would win one. The crowd cheered louder as an airman won a DVD player, another won a free massage and yet another won the grand prize of the night, an Xbox 360. The raffle was a great part of bringing everyone together and will serve as a fond memory for those who attended the event. 

Saying thank you to the multitude of Pope Airmen and their families was the main point of the evening. Master Sgt. Michael Crawley, 43rd Airlift Wing Inspector General, said. 
"We are always so busy at work and in our home life, so it is really important to slow down and just thank people for what they do," he said. "This was our way of thanking all our Airmen on Pope for what they do everyday to keep our base functioning. Without them... there is no Pope!" 

Master Sgt. Sylvia Ford, 43rd Airlift Wing, was one of the many coordinators of the event. "The dinner was such a success," Sergeant Ford said. "All of our contributors donated money, time and equipment within the first week of the planning stage." 

"It is difficult to name every single person that contributed to this event," Sergeant Crawley agreed. "Without the hard work by everyone involved, especially all those not in the spotlight, this event would not have happened." 

"We had three weeks to put this together," said Sergeant Ford. "Everybody put in so much time and tireless effort to make this an outstanding, successful event." 

And what a successful event it was. The night was full of Wii tournaments and face painting, laughter and friends, all there to say a big thank you to Pope's Airmen- the best in the Air Force.