Page 4 - Desert Lightning News, Nellis-Creech AFB Edition, July 9, 2021

4 July 9, 2021
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57th leadership visit security forces at main gate
Nellis Public Affairs Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.,
Main Gate.
On June 24, 2021, Gen. Mi- They provided the Defend-
chael Drowley, 57th Wing com- ers with cold refreshments and
mander, Chief Master Sgt. Raul temporarily relieved them of
Villarreal, 57th Wing Com- their duties by assisting them
mand Chief, surprised 99th with checking IDs and greet-
Security Forces Airmen at the ing visitors.
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Brig. Gen. Michael Drowley, 57th Wing
Commander, speaks with Master Sgt. Eric
Rogers, 99th Security Forces Squadron flight
chief, about SFS daily operations, June 24,
2021.
Air Force photographs
LEFT: Chief Master Sgt. Raul Villarreal, 57th Brig. Gen. Michael Drowley, 57th Wing
Wing command chief, checks Nellis team Commander, checks a Nellis team member’s ID
member’s ID at the Main Gate, June 24, 2021. at the Main Gate. June 24, 2021.
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David M.
Military Veteran
Learn more.
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Reserve Airman serving with Pride
by Natalie Stanley
Nellis AFB, Nev.
“I am a black man; I am a gay man; I am a queer man; I
am a married man. I have a lot of titles, but I am not defined
by any one title.”
Senior Master Sgt. Ashley Metcalf, 926th Force Support
Squadron sustainment services flight chief, said he celebrates
Pride Month because he is proud of being his whole self.
“I spent so much of my life trying to be like everyone else,
to be someone else, to hide from the thing that I thought
people wouldn’t like,” said Metcalf.
For him the month of June is about more than a social
media post, a drag show, a pride parade, or even parties; it’s
about a group of Airmen being seen after years of exclusion.
Having served under the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy,
Metcalf said erasing past hurts and creating a culture of
inclusion is not an overnight accomplishment.
“There has been no narrative for gay people, actually
no, the only narrative was bad,” he said. “This group was
excluded for years by law, by regulation, by guidance, and
it can be hard for the population to adjust.”
Hiding such a major part of his life for so many years was
a lonely and painful road for Metcalf, one where he said he
often felt excluded and dehumanized.
There was even a time in his military career when others
viewed him simply as, “the gay one.” Air Force photograph
Senior Master Sgt. Ashley Metcalf, 926th Force Support Squadron, sustainment services flight chief, during an LGBT+
See pridE, on Page 7 Panel event for Pride Month, June 23, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev.
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