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      Senior Airman Juan Antonio, left, is stationed with his brother, Airman 1st Class Antonio Antonio, at Langley Air Force Base, Va. Both brothers made senior airman below-the-zone. Juan is a 633rd Force Support Squadron services apprentice and Antonio is a 439th Supply Chain Operations Squadron A-10 Thunderbolt II mission capable technician.  (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Natasha Stannard)141028-F-GX122-013
                        
                        
                        Senior Airman Juan Antonio, left, is stationed with his brother, Airman 1st Class Antonio Antonio, at Langley Air Force Base, Va. Both brothers made senior airman below-the-zone. Juan is a 633rd Force Support Squadron services apprentice and Antonio is a 439th Supply Chain Operations Squadron A-10 Thunderbolt II mission capable technician.  (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Natasha Stannard)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

BTZ brothers bring out each other’s bestPublished Nov. 3, 2014
                    
                    By Staff Sgt. Natasha Stannard
                    
                    
                    633rd Air Base Wing Public Affairs
            **JOINT BASE LANGLEY EUSTIS, Va. (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.)*
Growing up in Athens, Texas, in a single income home didn't leave Juan Antonio and his brother, Antonio Antonio, much to fall back on, but they never dwelled on what they didn't have. They just did the best with what they had, which was each other.
"There have been many things that we have been through (that) not many others experience, but no matter what the struggle was we overcame it," Juan said.
They overcame difficulties by not only sticking together, but setting goals and helping each other achieve them.
"I was focused on school and doing well," Juan said. "I stayed away from bad people and doing drugs. I just wanted to be a good person."
Juan said he knew he had to set an example for his younger brother, so he worked diligently through schooling to get his bachelor's degree in business administration. Through term papers, tests and hours of homework, Juan still helped and pushed Antonio to achieve the same.
"He helped me through my high school years," Antonio said. "If I got in trouble or in a situation where I needed help, I always went to him. I respect him a lot. He's my older brother, my only brother -- he's the person I look up to the most."
About six months after receiving his bachelor's degree, Juan and Antonio went for a goal they had dreamed up a few years back -- they joined the U.S. Air Force.
"He was always that person I looked up to -- that partner in life," Antonio said of his brother. "I thought if he could do it, I could do it, so I joined."
Juan joined in the “open-general” category and shipped off for basic military training first, willing and ready to accept a job posting meeting Air Force needs. Antonio waited a few months for his desired job to become available.
After graduating technical training school and while his brother was in basic military training, Juan received orders to Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, where he now works as a senior airman in the 633rd Force Support Squadron.
A few months later, Antonio had orders in his hands. Expecting to go overseas, his orders read “439th Supply Chain Operations Squadron, Langley Air Force Base, Virginia.”
"I didn't think I would get stationed with him, and I could tell that when he heard the news, he was pretty excited," Antonio said.
"I knew that if he came here, I was going to help him out no matter what," Juan said.
Through their first few months at Langley, the two stuck together as they always had, meeting after work to talk about each other's days and sometimes de-stressing by playing a game of tennis-soccer, a childhood game they made up.
Enjoying their reunion, the brothers still kept their goals in sight. Juan's first was to earn senior airman below-the-zone. He saw what others who had made it before did and followed suit, volunteering and taking on leadership roles. Juan went up for his BTZ board in February 2014, and made it. Not resting on his laurels, he soon set a new goal – to help set up his brother Antonio, currently an airman 1st class, for success.
"I wanted to push him to get what I did and do even better than I did," Juan said of advising Antonio about promoting BTZ. "We are competitive in some ways, but for goals I guide him to do better than me."
With Juan's guidance, Antonio met with the board and was selected for BTZ in October.
"I was happy he got BTZ because I know that what I said helped him," Juan said. "I know he worked hard for it. I never told him, but I knew he should have gotten it."
Now, the brothers are preparing for their next challenge, which was on Juan's mind the moment Antonio earned rank.
"I was really excited thinking ahead that if we study really hard, we can make staff sergeant at the same time," Juan said.
Set to deploy next year and with plans to apply for Officer Training School in mind, Juan knows he and his brother, who has his heart set on going overseas, will eventually part.
"We're not always going to be together," Juan said. "Our bond is still going to be there, but our paths will lead us different ways. I want to encourage my brother to go overseas. I tell him, 'Don't let anyone stop you, not even me because at the end of the day when you go home it's only you,' so I always tell him to take chances."
As for the next chance Juan is taking, he plans to do everything he can to become an officer just as he and Antonio always planned.BTZ 



promotion 



career 



AF family 



 



brothers 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