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Career assistance advisers are ‘here to help Airmen’

  • Published
  • By Mike W. Ray
  • Tinker Public Affairs
TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  Young Airmen contemplating whether to "re-up" or retrain are urged to visit the Tinker Air Force Base career assistance advisers in the First Term Airmen's Center, Bldg. 5899.
Master Sgt. Bianca Locust and Master Sgt. Jennifer Crosby said they "are here to help Tinker's Airmen."

During an Informed Decision briefing 15 months prior to an Airman's separation date, "We brief on benefits and opportunities they have while in the Air Force, so they can use the information to decide whether to remain on active duty, go with the National Guard or the Reserves, or go back to civilian life," Sergeant Locust said.

The tasks of the two Team Tinker career assistance advisers include retraining, base-of-preference assistance in choosing a PCS, professional development, the non-commissioned officer professional enhancement seminar and the senior non-commissioned officer professional enhancement seminar.

They also manage a "unique re-enlistment program." If an Airman wants to conduct a re-enlistment ceremony at a special venue, the career assistance advisers will coordinate the event. For example, they've scheduled re-enlistment ceremonies at the Oklahoma City bombing memorial, at the Bricktown Ballpark, in a B-1 Lancer and in an E-3 AWACS Sentry aircraft. One ceremony was held at the Dallas Cowboys football stadium, Sergeant Crosby related. The unique re-enlistment program is a service that's offered at Tinker but not by every CAA in the Air Force.

"We have to be flexible in this job," Sergeant Locust said. "We have to do a lot of research to help Airmen decide how they want to proceed."

To perform their jobs they conduct unit visits "and we plan to do more walking around, talking to individuals," Sergeant Crosby said. Sergeant Locust said they plan to set up a booth in the Base Exchange mall area "to get our faces out there."

Some Airmen come to their office by appointment, while others are walk-ins, Sergeant Locust said. The two advisers said they've been contacted by e-mail and by 'phone text. "I've even been stopped in the food court at the BX," Sergeant Locust added.

Both sergeants said they applied for their jobs because they wanted to do more to help Airmen. "We had to interview for this job," Sergeant Locust said. "It's a special-duty assignment."

For both, it was a career change. Sergeant Locust was a radio frequency transmission technician, and Sergeant Crosby was in Medical Logistics: from supplies and equipment, from personnel and contracts to pills and bandages, "We ordered it."

Sergeant Locust has been on the job since last October. Sergeant Crosby is new in her post; she's replacing Master Sgt. Dana Reynolds, who intends to retire in December.
Sergeant Locust has been in the Air Force for 20 years. She was first stationed here in 1993, for 14 months, and returned to Tinker last July for a second tour. She is "a military brat" who was born in Germany. She can be reached at 622-7888.

Sergeant Crosby has been in the Air Force for 18 years. The North Carolina native was first assigned to Tinker in 2002, spent a year in Korea, and returned to Tinker in 2005. She can be reached at 734-9809.