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JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska (8/1/011) -- Excellence
is a trait that doesn't come cheap or easily.
For the Joint
Base Elmendorf-Richardson Honor Guard, the quest for perfection
involves a lot of sweat and hard work.
Air Force Staff Sgt.
Jorge Nunez, non-commissioned-officer-in-charge of the JBER Honor
Guard, said the key to his group's success is a heavy regimen of
practice.
"It is very important that we train over and over
again," he said. "We want to practice to the point that it becomes
muscle memory. Once everybody has it down, we strive for perfection
by making every step look crisp and sharp."
The honor guard
is a color guard and performs many other functions during
ceremonies, but the group's primary mission is to render honors in
funerals for military members. Nunez, a Danbury, Conn., native said,
his group takes its role seriously during funerals.
"We
represent not only our base, but the Air Force and the military, to
our local community," he said. "We stress to our members it is
crucial that they stay professional at all times during a detail."
The honor guard's hard work has been noticed by the local
community.
David McNeil, a funeral director for the Anchorage
Funeral Home, has seen the honor guard at work multiple times and he
said he is always impressed.
When McNeil learned the honor
guard needed a casket to practice for funeral details, he got
together with his peers from other funeral homes to figure out a way
to help the military unit out.
The original request was for a
damaged casket, but none could be found. The funeral directors
decided to buy a new one and even decorated it for the honor guard.
"It is a very basic casket, but plenty durable for them to
practice with," McNeil said. "It makes me feel good to help a team
of this caliber out like this. It is a privilege as a funeral home
to offer such a thing."
Senior Airman Timothy Parker, a
ceremonial guardsman for the honor guard, said he was drawn to join
the honor guard because he was impressed by the group's discipline
and camaraderie during events he had seen on base.
Parker
said, it has been an extremely rewarding experience for the five
months he has been part of the team.
"The honor guard is
awesome," said Parker, a Louisville, Ky., native. "I wanted to be a
part of such a disciplined group and I really wanted to pay respects
to our fallen during funerals. This allows me to serve the community
and other members of the military and their families."
Parker
said, he has also benefited personally from his service.
"I
have been able to develop myself as a leader and got a chance to
meet new people."
During his most memorable honor guard duty
assignment to date, Parker traveled to Kodiak where he assisted the
Coast Guard during their 70th anniversary celebration.
Even
though he was the lowest ranking military member in his group, the
airman was in charge of training the detail.
Parker said his
NCOIC has stressed the important of practice.
"The training
is very important and if you go a long time without it you can get
rusty even if you had it mastered before," Parker said. "If you are
at a ceremony and you get nervous and forget something, your muscle
memory will bail you out."
Nunez said, a lot of work goes
into performing at details but he said it is all worth it.
"It is such a good feeling to have people come up to you after the
event and tell you what a good job you did," Nunez said. "It
definitely emotionally touches you - deeply. The people sacrificed
so much and it makes me feel good to know that we sent them off with
the respect and professionalism that they deserved."
Nunez
encourages airmen interested in joining the honor guard to attend
one of their Monday training sessions.
"It is a great
opportunity to meet new people outside your career field," he said.
"Being able to network a bit is very helpful in broadening your
career."
By USAF Tech. Sgt. Jeremy Larlee
Joint Base
Elmendorf-Richardson Public Affairs
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2011
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