28 SFS key spouses: "we're here for you"

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Jarad A. Denton
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. --  Walk into the main entrance of the 28th Security Forces Squadron building on base, past the armory, turn down the last hallway on the left and walk until a door next to vending machines comes into view.

On any given day an Airman or their family from the squadron can walk inside and meet Mindy Grice, 28 SFS key spouse and wife of Master Sgt. Michael Grice, 28 SFS team leader.

"We're here for you," Mrs. Grice said. "Maj. [Thomas] Segars [28 SFS commander] wanted us to have a spot in the squadron to distinguish where we were located."

Both Mrs. Grice and the other 28 SFS key spouse, Sara Huckaby, wife of Airman 1st Class Justin Huckaby, 28 SFS patrolman, are working hard to turn the space they've been given into an area spouses can come to and learn about what the key spouse program offers them. The 28 SFS is the first organization on base to offer their keys spouses a workspace inside their headquarters building.

"We try to meet every new spouse [in the 28 SFS] when they come on base," Mrs. Huckaby said. "We're also trying to get the word out that we're setting up here."

Mrs. Huckaby said she was on base for nearly four months, not really knowing anyone, before she met Mrs. Grice at a squadron function. She said after hearing the mission of the key spouse program she was eager to volunteer.

Key spouses are involved in numerous base functions such as picnics, holiday parties and get-togethers. However, their primary mission is to provide a support network for spouses on base.

The 28 SFS has a high deployment rate, said Mrs. Grice. Spouses need a strong support group during that time period, especially if they are new to the base and don't know what Ellsworth or the local area has to offer.

"In the expeditionary environment we live in today, key spouses are an integral part in facilitating the people and family programs for the commander," said Major Segars. "In units with busy operations tempos, such as security forces, this additional help is absolutely pivotal and is one of the four pillars of my command - people, mission, training and integration."

Major Segars said he came up with the idea of giving the key spouses a room in the squadron building after listening to how other commanders on base incorporated key spouses into their units. He decided to provide the key spouses with a location both they and the Airman and Family Readiness Center consultant can use as a welcome center for new comers.

"It's a symbiotic relationship with the key spouse and AFRC consultant," he said. "The consultant has in-depth knowledge of a myriad of Air Force and Ellsworth programs, and the key spouse is a non-military entity to help push those programs."

Major Segars said he hopes to, as new families come to Ellsworth, turn the key spouse office into a "Spouse's Den." The area will allow key spouses to greet new families and "bring them into the fold," he said. It will also have furniture, toys for children to play with, brochures, pamphlets and other resources both for new 28 SFS families as well as families already settled in on base.

He said he hopes the new office will encourage more spouses within the 28 SFS to get involved with the key spouse program.

Mrs. Grice said she became a key spouse after her husband deployed and she discovered the squadron didn't have a solid program in place.

"It gave me something to stay busy with while my husband was deployed," she said. "I'm also able to be there for the spouses who need me, which is the part of this job I enjoy the most."

Mrs. Grice encourages 28 SFS spouses to get involved and attend spouse group meetings, which are held the second weekend of every month at 4 p.m. in the 28 SFS building heritage room.

"Come join us and support us," said Mrs. Huckaby. "We're here for you."