Airman honors supervisor in JEC essay contest Published June 24, 2011 By Airman 1st Class Ryan Wilson 552nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- Editor's note: Tinker's Junior Enlisted Council recently started an essay contest, giving Airmen a chance to recognize their supervisors. Following is the winner for this month. I have been at Tinker for almost two years now and I would not be where I am today without the assistance and support of Tech. Sgt. Joshua Pearcy. Sergeant Pearcy was the shop chief for white comm/nav for my first year and a half at Tinker but has since moved on to production. He was instrumental in my initial training and has helped me on and off duty. Due to his expert leadership and unique ability to keep production off our backs, the shop's performance was exceptional. During his time as shop chief we maintained a 100 percent Quality Assurance pass rate and managed to keep the active and delayed discrepancies for our jets under one page. The aspect of Sergeant Pearcy's character that I most admire is his willingness to stand up for the Airman under him, regardless of the situation. By following his example, I have learned to always look out for my fellow Airmen and to put the needs of those around me first. These are some of the many reasons why Sergeant Pearcy should receive the Junior Enlisted Council Supervisor Award. Sergeant Pearcy is well liked and well respected among everyone in the 552nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, where he leads by example and is always there when you need him. Always available to answer a question or lend a helping hand, Sergeant Pearcy has helped me to not only learn how to perform the tasks and duties of my job but to help me understand why each system works the way it does and why that was important. He took the time to explain the importance of teamwork and how each Airman from the 3-levels to the 5-levels and the 7-levels each play their own role in performing effective maintenance practices. I remember one time a few months after I arrived at Tinker another Airman in our shop got hit pulling out of a restaurant in Bricktown in downtown Oklahoma City. Sergeant Pearcy drove all the way from Harrah on a Saturday night to pick him up and take him back to base. This is just one of many examples of how Sergeant Pearcy looks out for the Airmen around him. His most admirable quality is his willingness to take a stand for the Airmen he is in charge of. Regardless of the situation, if you need help he is guaranteed to be there fighting for you whether it be a speeding ticket on base, a QA fail, a missed appointment or you backed into someone's car in the parking lot. Sergeant Pearcy is the most dependable supervisor I have had in the Air Force and I hope that all my future supervisors will strive to replicate his example and look out for their Airmen regardless of what supervision or production demands. The most important thing I have learned from watching and listening to him is the importance of a team and looking out for each other, because at the end of the day nothing else really matters. By maintaining a healthy working relationship at work and in our off time we work better as a unit which in turn led to our 100 percent QA pass rate and such "clean" jets. These accomplishments were the direct result of the time and effort Sergeant Pearcy put in cultivating the working relationships with the shop and mentoring all of the Airman he was responsible for. Without his leadership, our shop and me as a maintainer would not be where we are today. As well as training and leading our shop he also played a very active role in supporting squadron functions and promoting squadron unity. He volunteered his time to help with the setup and teardown of squadron events, such as the Knucklebuster and Combat Dining Out ceremonies, plus he has never missed an FTAC graduation since I have been here. Not only did he assist with the setup and preparation, he has also MCed for a couple promotion ceremonies and related events. To go along with all of his work accomplishments, Sergeant Pearcy also dedicated a lot of his free time to helping throughout his community. In his local community he coached first and second grade basketball, as well as volunteered for roadside cleanup where he picked up many bags of trash and debris that littered the roads throughout Harrah. However, he not only volunteers within his local community but travels to Norman on a regular basis to volunteer at a free health clinic. He has volunteered more than 40 hours of his personal time at Health For Friends, which provides much needed medical assistance to local residents who do not have insurance. Somehow while doing all of this he also managed to find time for two kids, a wife and school. He has completed his bachelor's degree toward becoming a physician's assistant and is pursuing a career as a medical officer in the Air Force. Therefore I think Sergeant Pearcy is more than deserving of this award based on these accomplishments and everything else he does that goes on behind the scenes, unnoticed by most. Whether it be his willingness to lend a hand or his involvement in his community, Sergeant Pearcy is always helping those around him do better and work harder. Without his leadership I would not be where I am today and I can say that for almost every single Airman in our shop. Due to his consistent effort, determined attitude and unparalleled leadership day after day to improve our work environment and further our knowledge of each and every system we work on, we can effectively accomplish the mission assigned to us.