Thursday and Friday, March 20 and 21, 2008 - We (John, Becky and Geoffrey) flew from Detroit to San Antonio Wednesday, and we were joined by Becky's Mom, Peg, who flew from Pittsburgh here. After six and a half weeks of BMT (Basic Military Training), we witnessed Preston's transition from a trainee to an Airman. The ceremonies were very impressive and moving.
At 9:00am Thursday, all the gradutes-to-be (about 800 in Preston's training group) passed by cheering families in an Airman's Run. Then at 1:30pm, they marched in their flights into a large review area to receive the coin which is given to each new Airman. They recited the Airman's Creed, sang the Air Force song ("Off We Go Into the Wild Blue Yonder"), and performed various ceremonial maneuvers. The last event on Thursday was the ceremony of Retreat, where the flag was lowered and folded to signify the official end of the day. At the conclusion of Retreat, we had our first opportunity to hug our son since he left us on February 5 for BMT.
Since Preston had seen very little of Lackland during his training (only what the Training Instructors wanted him to see), we actually knew more about facilities on base than he did. We took him to Godfather's Pizza on base for his first meal in six weeks which he didn't have to finish in two minutes! His many "yummy noises" during the meal told us how grateful he was!
After dinner, we went over to the Parade Grounds, which is surrounded by many historic aircraft, and just looked them over and talked, enjoying the beautiful sunny afternoon. Preston had to be back in his dorm at 7:30pm, so we weren't able to take him off base yet.
Friday was the other big day of festivities. At 9:00am, we were transferred to the Parade Ground via buses to see all the graduating squadrons / flights march by in review in their full dress blues, accompanied by a fife and drum corp. As a tribute to women leadership in the Air Force, all Flights in the parade were led by female Military Training Instructors (MTIs). Preston told us later that his male MTI didn't take this news too well, but such is political correctness in today's military. At least the females are still called AirMEN!
Once the parade concluded, the new Airmen were administered their oath to protect the Constitution of the United States. After this, Col. Westerman dismissed the parents to go to meet their Airmen, who were to stay at attention until their loved ones were right next to them. Preston did an admirable job of keeping eyes front!
We drove to downtown San Antonio to see the Alamo (amazing how small the building is), and to stroll the Riverwalk, which is a beautiful, winding path along both sides of a canal loop of the San Antonio river. The landscaping, architectural mix of the buildings on either side, and the many attractive shops and restaurants make for a great way to spend a day. (It's a crying shame that Detroit can't have a destination like this!)
We ate at a fine restaurant on the Riverwalk called Boudro's (I highly recommend it if you ever visit). Preston was in bliss eating his chicken fried ribeye steak, garlic mashed potatoes and fresh guacamole prepared tableside... just being able to eat ANYTHING over a period of more than two minutes was a blessing to him!
We spoke with a very nice lady who stopped Preston (who was still wearing his dress blues), and went on and on thanking him for his service to our country. She almost brought all of us to tears. I was again filled with pride to know there are still people who appreciate our defenders of freedom, and aren't afraid to say so.
We were supposed to attend a Spurs basketball game Friday night, but due to an error in communication between Preston and his MTI, we waited to get tickets until we arrived at AT&T Center, and the game was sold out. (We should have purchased them during the day at the BMT Reception Center.) No biggie; the base also arranged for us to see the AHL Rampage hockey team play at the same venue on Saturday night, so we still had lots of fun together.
Saturday during the day, we took advantage of Preston's military perks and went to SeaWorld on complimetary "Here's to the Heroes" passes. We had a beautiful sunny day with temperatures close to 80 degrees. At several of the show locations, the announcers acknowledged our Airman and other military personnel. It was a great day.
Resurrection Sunday, we joined Preston again on base at the Gateway Chapel for Easter worship service, then had a last lunch with him at the Popeye's Chicken at the Mini Mall on base. Then, we enjoyed a couple of games of bowling. It was humorous to see Preston view these facilities for the first time!
Finally, it came time to give our goodbye hugs around 3:00pm, as Preston prepared to take an eight-hour bus ride Monday to his next assignment, Sheppard AFB in Wichita Falls, Texas. He will spend the next 17 weeks there getting his Technical Training in Electrical and Environmental Systems.
As I hugged him goodbye, I whispered in his ear, "I'm so very proud of you." He answered, "That's all I wanted to hear from you."
Here's a slide show of our visit with our hero! Please continue to pray for him, and all our brave men and women in our Armed Forces!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
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