Fallen service members honored in Gold Star memorial service Published April 3, 2018 By Dr. Lisa Rich and Suzanne Black Travis Airman and Family Readiness Center TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – In a show of support for families of fallen service men and women, representatives from the Travis Airman and Family Readiness Center and the Travis First Sergeants Council attended the 2018 Gold Star Families Honor and Remembrance event held Feb. 22 at the Marine's Memorial Club and Hotel in San Francisco. Senior Master Sgt. Jason Wilson, 60th Civil Engineer Squadron first sergeant, Master Sgt. Khafiz Gondry, 60th Logistics Readiness Squadron and Master Sgt. Michael Richardson, 60th Comptroller Squadron and Wing Staff Agencies first sergeant, all with the Travis First Sergeants Council attended the reception and delivered proceeds raised during the seventh annual Gold Star Families Ruck March held in 2017 at Travis Air Force Base, California. The Travis First Sergeants Council sponsors the annual ruck march event during May and representatives from the council attend the Gold Star Families event the following February, hand-delivering the proceeds. “It is an honor to support the families who have lost a loved one in military service,” said Wilson. The annual event brings together approximately 200 families for two days to remember their fallen heroes, connect with other GSF and learn about support resources for surviving families of fallen service members. One such service is the Air Force Families Forever program, represented by Suzanne Black, Travis AFB AFFF program manager, and Joan Miller, AFFF program assistant, of the Travis AFB AFRC. Ensuring that the families of our fallen Airmen are never forgotten by providing immediate and long-term compassionate support is the mission of AFFF. Black and Miller set up an information table during the Thursday evening reception discussing the support surviving family members can receive through the AFFF program located at the Travis AFRC. Black and Miller visited each remembrance table, speaking with family members and hearing the stories of their fallen loved one represented in the photos and memorabilia they had displayed. Yolanda Vega, Golden Gate Chapter of the American Gold Star Mothers president, lost her son, Senior Airman Jonathan V. Yelner, when he was killed April 29, 2008 in Afghanistan. She shared her son’s life with Black and Miller and thanked them for attending the event and for the support she has received through AFFF. Vega received her Air Force Gold Star Defense Biometric Identification System access card on Jan. 16, 2018, allowing her access to Travis AFB to attend events, ceremonies and access to AFFF support services at the Travis AFRC. While Vega received letters of condolence from various U.S. Air Force officials after her son’s death, she felt the message was more of a sentiment instead of a reality. But after speaking with Black about the AFFF program and new Gold Star DBIDS initiative, she finally believed she was part of the Air Force family. “She truly made me feel like the Air Force valued me,” said Vega. “When they gave me that card, I thought, ‘I believe you now. I am Air Force.’ It is a tremendous amount of pride and a tremendous amount of feeling that I am truly appreciated as a Gold Star mom, as the mother of an Airman who lost his life for our country. It is a big thank you and I carry that thank you in the form of an ID.” “We want Gold Star Families to know their loved ones are not forgotten, that they are not alone, said Black. “That we, the Air Force family, are here for them.” AFFF Gold Star mom,Tatiana Oddson, experienced unimaginable loss when her son, Airman 1st Class Alfred Komlev, died on active service while stationed at Aviano Air Base, Italy. While attending the two-day event, she expressed, “We want to ensure our sons and daughters continue to live on and the stories we share with others during events like this help us to do that”. Oddson continues to stay connected to her Air Force family by participating in the annual Travis AFB Ruck March, receiving family support services through her local veteran center and volunteering her time at the United Service Organization on Travis AFB. Oddson shared another proud moment when she witnessed her daughter, Lolita, enlist into the United States Air Force. Oddson credits the AFFF program and Black for keeping her connected to the Air Force and local community. “I know I have a family. I am not alone,” said Oddson”. For more information on the Air Force Families Forever program and the Gold Star DBIDS access card, call the Airman and Family Readiness Center at 707-424-2486.