Bee Liner, officer does 'Big' service for community

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Geneva Croxton
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  Being a pilot and an executive officer for the 21st Airlift Squadron are just a fraction of Capt. Saj El-Amin's busy week.

For the past two years, El-Amin has been a "Big," an adult volunteer in the Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Bay community.

El-Amin first learned about the Big Brothers Big Sisters program when he was a cadet at the Air Force Academy. Though unable to find time in his schedule between academics and playing both Division I basketball and football for the academy, El-Amin knew he wanted to be part of the program.

After completing an interview, El-Amin was selected for the program and matched with his "Little," who was 11 years old at the time. El-Amin appreciates the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program for allowing him to give back to his mentors.  

"Growing up, I was involved in the community and had mentors who looked out for me," El-Amin said. "I knew how much these mentors meant and how influential of a role they played in my success from working hard in school and with sports to being accepted to the Air Force Academy and becoming a C-17 pilot." 

El-Amin faced many challenges growing up in a single-parent household with three siblings, living in a two-bedroom apartment.

"The neighborhood was rough, with a prevalence of drugs and violence," he said. "Though we all played sports, my mother was a school teacher and always told us 'you cannot go outside and play until your homework is done,' and she stressed the fact that our grades needed to be high if we wanted to play sports."

El-Amin reflects on these principles when he spends time with his "Little."

"For my 'Little,' I am male role-model and can look out for him, the same way I was looked out for," El-Amin said. "I try to emulate both my mother and high school basketball coach in my mentorship, as they kept me on track as I got older.

"This guidance pushed me to realize that if I wanted to play sports, I should do it well enough to earn a college scholarship. However, I also needed to make sure I had the grades to support being accepted to a competitive school. The structure and mentorship my mother provided was crucial for me to be as successful as I am today."

El-Amin's basketball coach, Kevin Hendrick, now the principal of Northeast High in St. Petersburg, Florida, also played a fundamental role in his success. He pushed El-Amin to get to practice early and oftentimes leave late to help develop his skill.

For Hendrick, El-Amin stood out as someone who consistently showed hard work and effort who could benefit from extra guidance and mentorship.

"When I first met Saj, he was a freshman and had just moved from Texas to Florida," Hendrick said. "I knew that the move frustrated him. He felt like he left his life behind. With coaching, I was able to help him find a life in Florida, as I could see he was very talented both physically and academically. He always wanted to get better and was always trying to do the right thing."

The impact Hendrick made on El-Amin will never be forgotten.

"Coach Hendrick was dedicated to keeping me engaged and helped me stay on the right track," El-Amin said. "I remember taking an extra long break from class in the hallway and Coach Hendrick used to find me and walk me back to class. He saw something in me, and pushed me to be better."

When Hendrick reflects today on El-Amin's success, he is not surprised.

"Seeing him now is great," Hendrick said. "As an educator, we don't always get to see results like these. I am so proud to see his accomplishments due to the effort and hard work he has put in to his career."

El-Amin encourages his peers to be involved in programs such as Big Brother Big Sister, sharing his positive experiences.

"The responsibilities of being a 'Big' are usually not one a young (company-grade officer) or a CGO without children would face," El-Amin said. "It is easy to worry only about yourself, easy to be really great at taking care of yourself. When you have someone else, however, who is counting on you, depending on you and looking up to you, you're forced to make sure you are walking the walk, as well as talking the talk."

El-Amin said the most rewarding thing was to be able to provide the same mentorship for a "Little" that he received when he was younger. Without mentors, El-Amin said, he wouldn't be where he is today.

"When I tell my 'Little' about the great mission we do in the squadron, how we fly around the world and how we are professionals, experts and leaders, I am given a sense of accountability, allowing me to not only worry about myself, but know I have somebody who is looking up to me as well," El-Amin said. "I think this is where the leadership and the officership come in to play. Being a role model isn't just a title for an email block. You have to work to be a role model."

El-Amin encourages his peers to get out and help.

"There are so many kids out there on waiting lists to have a big brother or big sister," he said. "At the age most of these kids are at, without a role model and a positive guide in their life, there are limited options which can often lead to drugs, gangs, violence and the worst possible outcome of death from being around the wrong crowd."