Page 12 - Desert Lightning News 5-6-16

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Climbing to the top with Chief ingredients
Airman 1st Class Ashely N. Steffen
355th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
DAVIS-MONTHAN AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz.
-- Achieving the rank of chief master sergeant in
the U.S. Air Force wasn’t initially a goal for a few of
Davis-Monthan Air Force Base’s new chief master
sergeants. Life changes and years of trial and error
are a couple of the ingredients that shaped their
paths to the highest enlisted grade of E-9.
“Making Chief was not a goal of mine, I came
from a small town that I just wanted to get out of
before I got stuck, I had no education,” said Chief
Master Sgt. Rodney Vanleuven, 355th Logistics
readiness Squadron superintendent. “My original
enlistment was four years. Then I had my daugh-
ter and that changed my plans. It wasn’t until 21
years in the Air Force that chief became my goal.”
Two others selected as chief master sergeants,
Chief Mast Sgt. Nathan Lakin, 755th Aircraft
Maintenance Squadron superintendent, and Se-
nior Master Sgt. Jennifer Hellwig, 355th Elec-
tronic Maintenance Squadron first sergeant, had
planned to retire after completing first sergeant
duty and hitting their 20-year mark.
Focusing too much on only one area of the whole
Airman concept can prove to be counterproductive.
“When I was an Airman 1st Class, I remember
I didn’t make senior airman below the zone. I was
upset, I had done everything they had told me
to do,” said Hellwig, who sews on later this year.
“What I had actually done was run myself ragged
volunteering. I had everything in the frying pan
but I was burning it all. I was doing all of this
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May 6, 2016
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stuff, but I wasn’t dedicated to anything.”
Not being dedicated to anything led Hellwig to
become unreliable at work and unable to handle
all of her responsibilities.
“Your brain can only handle so much that you
end up dropping things; you just need to focus
on work,” Hellwig said.
Chiefs are in the top of the enlisted ranks where
only one percent of the enlisted force make chief.
Not all chiefs made BTZ or got Stripes for Excep-
tional Performers Promotions.
Like Vanleuven, some have been at each and
every rank.
“It’s great to say that I wore every single rank,
and it’s ok if you don’t make BTZ or get STEP
promoted,” Vanleuven said.
Some even struggled throughout their careers,
having to work their hardest to climb the ladder
to the top.
“I was a late bloomer,” Hellwig said. “It took me
four tries to make staff sergeant, four to make tech.
sergeant, three to make master [sergeant] and an-
other four to make senior [master sergeant].”
Hellwig pushed forward with the help of her husband.
“My husband said not to cut myself short, to
give it all I could,” Hellwig said. “If I did that, then
I knew I couldn’t have done any better, I would
have no regrets.”
For Lakin, getting to the top of the enlisted
force was more of a competition. When the Air
Force would throw him in a situation he was un-
comfortable in, he would try and grow from it.
“Some of the things that happened to me that
I didn’t want or resisted, good things came out of
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it,” Lakin said. “Some of the things I didn’t like at
the time turned out to be the greatest things to
happen to me.”
Some of D-M AFB’s new chief master ser-
geants had amazing supervisors throughout their
careers that guided them to the top.
“I had really good supervisors early on in my
career. They pushed me to excel and wouldn’t ac-
cept mediocrity on anything,” Lakin said. “Right
from the start I had people to hold me to the
standard and push me to excel and that always
stuck with me through my career.”
As a supervisor, each chief had something
to pass down to those under them. Everything
we receive as supervisors we aren’t supposed to
keep, we are supposed to hand down, accord-
ing to Vanleuven. Some of the new chiefs have
knowledge to pass down, things they lived by
throughout their careers and things they learned
from previous supervisors.
“Do what you love and everything will fall into
place,” Hellwig said. “When you enjoy something you
give your time and life to it and you become reliable.
People will look for you when they need something.”
For growing Airmen, Lakin said to stick to
your core values, show up to work, be honest,
and do your best for the rest will fall into place.
“I believe in three words: application, elimina-
tion and perseverance.” Vanleuven said. “No mat-
ter what, apply yourself 100 percent, eliminate
bad decisions and never give up, no matter your
rank, put in the effort and give it all you can.”
It takes an entire Air Force to develop a chief
master sergeant.
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