Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Airman 1st Class Nana Sefa is deployed to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, from Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. Following this deployment, Sefa, a native of Ghana, will see his wife for the first time after being apart for two years. Sefa is a 455th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron vehicle management analysis craftsman. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Evelyn Chavez)Airman’s service helps unite his family
                        
                        
                        Airman 1st Class Nana Sefa is deployed to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, from Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. Following this deployment, Sefa, a native of Ghana, will see his wife for the first time after being apart for two years. Sefa is a 455th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron vehicle management analysis craftsman. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Evelyn Chavez)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Airman's service helps unite his familyPublished Sept. 3, 2014
                    
                    By Staff Sgt. Evelyn Chavez
                    
                    
                    455th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
            **BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (AFNS) --***(This feature is part of the "Through Airmen's Eyes" series on AF.mil. These stories focus on a single Airman, highlighting their Air Force story.)*
Being away from family is nothing new to Airman 1st Class Nana Sefa, who is currently deployed to Afghanistan on a six-month tour; after all, it's only a quarter of the time he has spent away from his wife.
Sefa, a 455th Logistics Readiness Squadron vehicle management analysis craftsman, deployed from Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, understands that being away from family is difficult, as he has experienced separation his entire life. Growing up in Ghana, his father left for America when he was only four years old. After his father was gone, Sefa constantly moved around Ghana taking turns living with his mother, grandparents and at boarding schools.
"It was tough not having my mom around sometimes, especially when I was a kid," Sefa said. "I remember wanting to leave with her when I lived with my grandparents. I would not want to fall asleep, afraid that she would leave when I did. The next day when I woke up I would always ask my grandparents for her."
Although it was difficult moving around, Sefa learned to live and overcome being away from his mother, sister and father. At 19, after graduating from boarding school, he learned that his father was hoping Sefa and his sister would come live with him in California.
"After boarding school, I was finally able to be home with my mom," Sefa said. "We were having the opportunity to get to know each other more. Then, after graduation, my father filed for my sister and me to move with him to the U.S. I was excited because I hadn't seen him for a while, but at the same time I was sad because I was leaving my mom and girlfriend."
In 2010, Sefa and his sister made the journey to the States to be with their father. Immediately after arriving, he started working to pay for his college education. He learned to play American football and quickly adapted to a new way of life. After a few months in his new home, Sefa had saved enough money to return to Ghana to visit his mother and girlfriend.
During his short stay in Ghana, Sefa and his girlfriend, who would later become his wife, made the decision to attempt a long-distance relationship. Sefa wouldn't see his girlfriend again for two years.
"We kept in touch either on Facebook or phone calls," Sefa said. "We had a lot of trust in our relationship, and because what I had gone through with my mom, I understood how to deal with being apart."
Eventually, Sefa made the decision to join the Air Force to help the process of becoming a U.S. citizen and because he'd always been interested in the military, as he was part of the cadet program in his boarding school. After signing the enlistment paperwork, he again made the journey to Ghana to let his future wife know what his plans were.
"When I visited home in 2012, my family was very excited to see me after two years of being away," Sefa said. "I knew I was joining the Air Force and that I would be able to take care of my girlfriend, so I went ahead and asked her to marry me. I proposed and married her during my visit; then I had to make sure to get back to the States to start basic training."
As Sefa made the journey back to America, his wife remained in Ghana. After basic training, tech school and moving to his first duty station at Holloman AFB, he settled in one location in February 2013 only to receive a deployment tasking to Afghanistan.
"A few months after I arrived to Holloman I was able to finally get my citizenship," Sefa said. "Then shortly after I was told I was going to deploy. While I was deployed, my wife finally was able to get her green card and travel to New Mexico this past July."
Only seeing his wife twice during the last four years was a long struggle for Sefa. According to him, trust and understanding are what have made his relationships strong.
"I am really excited to go back home," Sefa said. "Sometimes it was hard being away from my wife, but she was very understanding. All she needed from me was reassurance that I was thinking about her."
While it's been difficult for Sefa to be away from his wife, he embodies the Air Force's core value of service before self. When offered the opportunity to curtail his deployment, Sefa declined in order to finish his mission and time in Afghanistan.
"Airman Sefa exemplifies our core value of service before self," said Chief Master Sgt. Jeffery Brown, the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing command chief. "Despite the potential to return home early, he expressed his desire to stay and finish the mission. Sefa also demonstrated our core value of excellence in all we do. In his duty section, on his own accord, (he has taken) on a role and responsibility normally reserved for a noncommissioned officer. He has proven his work ethic and warrior ethos."
Joining the military almost guarantees service members will be separated from their families at any given moment. For Sefa, his service is the best thing he has done to help unite his newly formed family because it allowed him to become a citizen and bring his wife to America. As he approaches the end of his deployment, Sefa will finally have a place to call home, as his wife will be waiting to join him after a long wait of being apart.
"When I get back we will celebrate our two year anniversary," Sefa said. "We might have a wedding, since we didn't have a big celebration. I am also trying to get my mom to move out here, and then our family will all be together."Air Force family 



deployment 



Bagram Airfield Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF Kendall visits Bangor ANG Base
                    
                    Vice President Harris congratulates USAFA Class of ‘24
                    
                    Senate confirms Melissa Dalton as next Under Secretary of the Air Force
                    
                    ‘One Team, One Fight’: SecAF visits Keesler AFB
                    
                    SecAF Kendall experiences VISTA of future flight test at Edwards AFBInnovation
                AFSFC reaches final phase of fielding Model Defender gear
                    
                    Around the Air Force: PCS Allowances, Air Task Forces, All-Volunteer Force
                    
                    AFIMSC focuses I-WEPTAC topics on GPC solutions
                    
                    Optimizing AI, Air University hosts Artificial Intelligence Symposium
                    
                    AFIMSC tools deliver data-driven solutions across DAFMAJCOM News
                AFMC to expand AcqDemo workforce
                    
                    AFMC empowers small businesses for Air Force reoptimization
                    
                    Acquisition Instructor Course Class 25A open for nominations
                    
                    Air Guard leaders host 2024 Wing Leader Conference
                    
                    Referral bonuses aim to help fill mission-critical vacancies
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil