How will you shape your image in history?

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Daniel Guinan
  • 60th Civil Engineer Squadron commander
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., --  Among the many mementos in my office is a small black and white picture about the size of a dollar bill.

With the help of my Air Force historian brother, Rich Guinan, it was determined the picture was likely taken at Fort Bliss, Texas, circa 1923.

I first came across the picture while stationed at Headquarters Air Mobility Command. Being a bit of a history buff, I always enjoyed the photo and was able to get a digital copy before I PCSed.

As I have continued through my career, my perspective on the photograph has changed from a work of art to a reminder of the importance of the relationships we build daily. Only four of the 14 Airmen have their names on the picture: Claire Chennault, Thomas Hastey, Roscoe Wriston and Harvey Prosser. Only two of the Airmen are looking at the camera, several are engaged in conversation, a few seem to be deep in thought and one or two seem to be inspecting the polish on their boots.

It is the kind of candid photo that you could get in any decade, at any base, in any squadron, when you put 14 Airmen in front of an aircraft. Once that photo is snapped, the Airmen will live in eternity together. So I ask you, who do you want to be associated with for eternity?

As you join different squadrons throughout your career, you will find the high-performing Airmen tend to gravitate toward one another. The members of the group constantly strive to be the best in their group. When surrounded by excellence, the individuals must bring their A game every day to remain in the group.

The end result is constant improvement in the squadron and overall organizational excellence. The inverse also is true: Maurice Clarrett, former Ohio State running back and convicted felon, recently said in a Sports Illustrated interview that he has a picture of "15 guys from my neighborhood, hanging out in a nightclub, partying. Out of those 15 people, 10 of them have been in state or federal prison, including myself. Two of them are dead. You look at that photo and a lot of stuff makes sense."

Like the Airmen in my photograph, we must all work together and lift each other to greater heights. It may not be command of 14th Air Force or the famed Flying Tigers (Gen. Claire Chennault) or command of the XXII Bomber Command (Col. Roscoe Wriston), but maybe we can pick someone up from a crash (Lt. Thomas Hastey) or help build a lifelong AF family, motivating our sons and daughters to serve like Lt. Harvey Prosser, whose son commanded an F-105 Thunderchief fighter squadron in Vietnam, but you will undoubtedly make a positive difference in your squadron.

I encourage you to find the high performers in your unit and join them. Strive to be the best of your group and get noticed for the right reasons. You may just push the Airmen next to you in your picture to greater achievements. Then, one day, you can sit back and look at your picture and say, "that is a picture of great Airmen doing amazing things and I was one of them." I know I will look at my picture of Travis and think of how lucky I was to have served with you.