Travis team has a ball

  • Published
  • By Tailwind Staff
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  
More than 1,200 Airmen, their families and local community members witnessed an extra special performance Friday night as part of the base's Air Force 60th Anniversary Ball.

The special performance came in the form of the evening's guest speaker Mr. Jay Leno, host of The Tonight Show, who came to show his appreciation to the men and women who serve in the military.

"I accept all the invitations I can for the armed forces. If they get a kick out of me telling jokes, it's the least I can do to show my appreciation," said Leno.

The celebration started solemnly as the Travis Honor Guard posted the colors followed by a tribute to the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen prisoners of war, and those missing in action.

"As the years go by, they are unable to be with us, so we always remember them because of their incarceration and unaccountability," read the script as the hangar fell silent. "The table is set for one, symbolizing the frailty one prisoner alone against his oppressors."

From there the evening shifted gears into more of a festive birthday celebration.

In keeping with tradition, the member with the most senior time-in-service, Col. Robert Lucania, 60th Medical Surgical Operations Squadron, and the member with the least time-in-service, Airman Basic Morgan Campbell, 60th Logistics Readiness Squadron, had the honor of cutting the cake assisted by the bases' leadership and Mr. Jay Leno. With knife in hand, Colonel Lucania and Airman Campbell cut the cake together symbolizing the cooperation that exists between the ranks.

After the cutting of the cake, it was time to introduce the special guest of the evening everyone had been waiting for. Laughter filled the hangar for over an hour as Leno entertained the audience with his stand-up routine.

"He was so funny, my wife had to keep helping me back in my chair I was laughing so hard," joked Capt. John Flynn, 60th Air Mobility Wing executive officer. "It was a world-class performance from a world-class guy."

However, even the man known for his vast entertainment ability, took a moment to express a more serious message.

"It's a tremendous honor for me to be here," he said. "I want to say 'Thank you for your service' to the men and women at Travis. It's funny to think it has only been 60 years that the Air Force has been around; it's come a long way."

The evening's success was a direct result of a year's worth of planning by the 60th Anniversary Committee comprised of more than 40 Team Travis members and plenty of assistance from the entire base.

"The base's squadrons and off base organizations were indispensable to ball preparation," said Maj. Theresa Murphy, the ball coordinator.

The hard work and tremendous effort was apparent as guests arrived. Instead of walking into a hangar, they entered a location more closely resembling the opening night of a Broadway show.

"The spouses' group was instrumental in the design and coordination of the centerpieces and finalizing touches that really help transform Hangar 818 from a maintenance facility into the most amazing scene - a scene created by a lot of hard work and community involvement," said Major Murphy.

"Members of the Travis Regional Armed forces committee helped make the night a monumental success with generous donations. Without their generosity, we could not have done what we did.

"But really, it would be difficult to mention everyone who helped. Had we not had reps from every group on base this night wouldn't happen," Major Murphy said. "Everyone really came together to help commemorate the 60th anniversary in style"

"I can't take credit for the all the success," Major Murphy said. "Lt. Col. Andy Cole got the ball rolling a year ago, if you pardon the pun. His master plan was well established, so when he deployed we were well on our way."

"This is the absolute premier event ever coordinated here at Travis," said Col. Steve Arquiette, 60th Air Mobility Wing commander. "It is truly a celebration of history, legacy and teamwork."

The Travis Air Museum helped reflect on the Air Force's 60 years with displays of historical memorabilia, but nothing could top the living historical display in the vintage uniform proudly worn by Duncan Miller a World War II pilot, Colonel Arquiette mentioned. Mr. Miller was wearing the same uniform he wore when he served here at Travis 60 years ago.

"But not only that," he continued. "Tonight was also a celebration of our Travis community. We were blessed to have guests from the governor's office, distinguished visitors from congressional staffs, Solano County and local cities, former wing commanders, general officers and topping it off a world-class entertainer Jay Leno. Jay Leno's generosity and patriotism is truly heartwarming. This is an event that Airmen, both active duty and Reserves, will tell stories about throughout their career."

"It was a culminating event, hard work was involved - It wasn't easy for all the organizations to come together and pull off this event," said Col. G.I. Tuck, 60th AMW vice commander. 

Friday's Air Force Ball wasn't the first time Leno entertained U.S. military members. He raised morale in Bosnia, [2001] Aviano Air Base, [1995] and Saudi Arabia [1990]. A reason for his interest in the military could be the fact that he has family members with military back-rounds. Three members of his family attended the United States Military Academy at West Point and another is a Vietnam Vet according to Leno.