The assistant secret ary of the Air Force for manpower, Reserve affairs, installations and environment has been at the front lines of battlefields in shooting wars and bureaucratic struggles, always, he stresses, with the interests of every airman, officer, civilian and family member at heart.
People have to be more valued in order to make our sophisticated weapon systems work.
When I was in uniform from '63 to '73, I think the respect and appreciation for the troops, as an integral part of our weapon systems, was almost zilch. That decade included warfare in Southeast Asia, where, if he didn't work in the trenches, as an Air Force civil engineering officer he certainly could have planned them. Throughout his commissioned years, he served in CE, which naturally honed the architecture graduate's continued interest in facilities and the environment. His outstanding service was recognized in 1970 as one of 17 people appointed by the president as a White House Fellow, and he served as a special assistant to the secretary of the interior. On his first departure from the Air Force, the graduate of Howard University, was appointed the executive assistant to the chairman of the District of Columbia City Council.