Heritage center curator no stranger to Travis

  • Published
  • By Nick DeCicco
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  The new heritage center curator at Travis Air Force Base, California, is someone who himself is part of the base's history.

Rick Shea took over in July as the Travis center's curator, but when he was on active duty, his first assignment was in inventory management at base supply during the 1970s.

"I grew very fond of the Bay Area and for 35 years, tried to get back here," Shea said. "I absolutely love it here. I'm excited to be here. ... I tell people, 'I'm just an average GI who retired some 20 years ago.' "

Shea spent the past decade as a historian at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, and Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico. During his eight years at Cannon, he took part in the transition from Air Combat Command to Air Force Special Operations Command, a change which he called "a once-in-a-lifetime experience."

"It was like a phoenix that rose up out of the ground," he said. "It was like building a new base."

Shea hopes to build and change the Travis Heritage Center, too. Among the projects he looks to undertake is a change in exhibits, which hasn't been done in nearly a decade.

"A museum, its lifeblood is its liveliness," Shea said. "Right now, we don't have that liveliness."

The change in recent years in distinction from a museum to a heritage center allows the facility to narrow its focus to the base and the wings' history, Shea said, as opposed to air mobility in general. Because it predates the existence of Travis, the center's World War I exhibit is among those set for change.

Shea also said he's working to improve the "storylines," the narratives which help visitors move through the museum and understand the artifacts they're viewing as well as their context.

Also coming soon are repainting projects for the airpark's B-52 Stratofortress, C-47 Skytrain, C-123 Provider and F-100 Super Sabre. In the longer term, Shea hopes to partner with members from the 60th Civil Engineer Squadron to resurface the airpark.

Other projects he envisions include a touch-screen exhibit for children and the cab for a previous installment of the base's air traffic control tower. Shea hopes to simulate the experience of being inside the tower as well as inside the C-5 Galaxy flight deck trainer that is on display now.

"Right now, (the C-5 is) just basically a shell with some gauges inside," he said. "I'd like to get some electricity hooked up so we can make that thing come alive and maybe show a panoramic view, at least from a cockpit standpoint, of the local area."

Shea said his goal and the goal of the heritage center as a whole is to teach, a role that he's come to accept over time. He quizzes new Airmen when they visit about things such as how many bases are named after enlisted Airmen (one) or how many Medal of Honor recipients the Air Force has had since 1947 (three).

"I think knowing those kinds of obscure facts better prepares people and it gets to a more questioning of, 'Why are there only three?' 'Why is there only one Air Force base?' " he said. "We're all destined to become the educators, we're destined to become the old salts. ... I think I'm no different than anyone else in that respect."

Teaching extends to children as well. Shea hopes some of the upgrades and projects he undertakes will inspire younger visitors to the heritage center, too.

"A spark can work into an interest and that could lead to a career for this young person," he said.

Shea said the facility is seeking volunteers for everything from dusting exhibits to aircraft washing to administrative tasks. For more information, call 707-424-5598 or speak to Shea at the museum from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.