Deployment offers opportunity to serve in honor guard

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Marelise Wood
  • 386th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Many deployed service members sometimes struggle to find new off-duty activities in the absence of friends or family.

Some dive into church, morale events or new fitness routines to make the most of their time. Some take the journey toward earning the honor guard brassard.

"Some people come here and they may have wanted to do it at their home base but didn't have the time," said Tech. Sgt. Kareem Edwards, 386th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron honor guard noncommissioned officer in charge. "Now they're at a deployed location and they have the time," added Edwards who's deployed from Royal Air Force Mildenhall, U.K.

The 386th Air Expeditionary Wing Honor Guard is currently about 30 members strong. About 10 members are working toward the aiguillette (rope), about 12 are aiguillette wearers working toward the brassard (arm band) and about eight are brassard wearers.

According to Master Sgt. James Lotz, 386th Expeditionary Force Support Squadron honor guard superintendent, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., it takes about two months on average to earn a brassard.

"They can't test for a brassard from nothing," said Lotz. "They have to come from having an aiguillette."

In order to earn the aiguillette, a member must demonstrate their ability to perform almost 30 different movements with minimal errors.

"It is about 30 different movements broken down into three sections; standing, rifle and flag manuals," said Lotz. "You must be able to complete these movements with no more than two errors in each section. You must contribute a minimum of 15 hours to the program and participate in a minimum of four details."

Staff Sgt. Scott Bell, 386th Expeditionary Force Support Squadron, deployed from Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, D.C., is a current aiguillette wearer and sees the journey as a show of dedication.

"The aiguillette is a statement of your dedication to the program and furthermore, to yourself," said Bell. "Discipline is needed to test and show proficiency to train those who will one day replace us and continue the chain of excellence."

To get to the next level of wearing the brassard, members must demonstrate additional movements and are evaluated even more stringently.

"We make it as difficult as possible," said Lotz. "We also require the member to have 40 hours towards honor guard, which is quite a bit. That's more than a month. It's probably about two months' worth of volunteering. They also must be recommended by their peers and they must recite the honor guard charge in front of those peers."

For Staff Sgt. David Sockett, 387th Expeditionary Support Squadron, deployed from Peterson AFB, Colo., is the organization's social media manager and the requirements did not deter him from his interest in being a member.

"I'm limited on how much free time I get and I'm also going to school, so I try to make sure...in fact I worked my education around honor guard because I wanted to make sure I did it because I really enjoy doing it," said Sockett. "Being a new person I really want to gain all the knowledge and experience I can."

Knowledge and experience he can gain not only from Lotz, but Edwards, a seasoned honor guard member.

"I have been in the Air Force since April 2001 when I was at my first base, Robins Air Force Base, Ga. I was in the honor guard for three months," said Edwards.

Initially pushed into it by his supervisor, Edwards was at first resistant.

"Back then, it was more of a 'voluntold' thing," said Edwards. "So of course, young airman first class Edwards was like, 'I don't want to do honor guard.'"

But the young Airman had an experience that had him changing his tune.

"There was an instance in Tennessee where we were doing a flag folding with a retiree who did 20 years or more," said Edwards. "His wife was in the church and she was really crying; we were folding and she was just crying. As honor guardsmen we can't move, we can't show emotion, so I'm standing there and she's directly in front of me while we're folding and you try not to look but you're hearing it. Then we hear the 21-gun salute and the family came over to us and they were so appreciative. I think that definitely sold me."

Anyone interested in joining the honor guard and experiencing their own honor guard moment, can drop by for one of the practice sessions. The group meets every Tuesday and Thursday at 5 p.m. in the base theater.

"If you're on the fence, come out and try it," said Lotz. "There's no risk involved, no contract to sign, no obligation. Come out to the practice and you might enjoy the environment, the sense of family that we have here."