919th SOW's first-ever enlisted reservist retires

  • Published
  • By Dan Neely
  • 919th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
DUKE FIELD, Fla. --  If you want to know how Duke Field's 919th Special Operations Wing has changed since its inception in 1971 you probably couldn't find a better person to ask than a just-retired Master Sgt. Robert "Steve" Shaud.  After all, he was the Reserve wing's first enlisted Airman.

After officially hanging up his uniform for the last time following a Nov. 14 retirement ceremony, a group of his longtime Duke Field comrades held an informal luncheon in his honor at a local restaurant Nov. 20. There the soft-spoken 919th Maintenance Squadron aerospace ground equipment technician of more than 38 years service was feted with everything from a 30-plus-year career longevity certificate to his most prized memento, a polished brass 105mm cannon shell casing from an AC-130 gunship, one of the wing's formerly assigned combat aircraft.

In all, Mr. Shaud served 11 years as a traditional reservist, with the remainder as an air reserve technician, or ART as they are more commonly known.  Such personnel carry dual status as full-time civil service employees for the Air Force.  As a condition of employment they must participate as reservists.

Carefully cradling the behemoth shell casing that bore congratulatory inscriptions, the now "Mr. Shaud" praised his well-wishers for their thoughtfulness and all-around support over the years. He concluded by challenging his audience of relative newcomers to keep up the wing's quality traditions of caring for fellow reservists and their families as a uniquely cohesive unit.

In a post-luncheon interview Mr. Shaud related how Duke Field became his longtime military home.

"I was just out of high school and trying to determine what to do," he recalled. "My father was active duty Air Force, and his suggestion was to go active duty. But at the time, I didn't really want to make that commitment. My dad came home one day and said, 'I heard they're starting a Reserve unit out at Duke.' So we went out to look for it, but nobody seemed to know much about it," he said with a smile.

After some initial uncertainty, Mr. Shaud and his father finally received word recommending he contact a certain colonel at Duke Field to learn more about availabilities there. That colonel was none other than Col. Donald Haugen, the 919th SOW's eventual first commander (currently a retired brigadier general).

"When we finally met up with Colonel Haugen, he said, 'Yes, we'll be recruiting for the reserves.  Why don't you take these tests and see if you qualify?' So I went and took the ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery) test, qualified, then Congressman Robert Sikes actually swore me in. So, technically, I was the first traditional enlisted reservist to join the 919th."

Scoring high enough to open up a laundry list of available Air Force specialties, the young recruit opted to begin his career as an AGE specialist, admittedly selecting it "just because it had the longest (technical training) school -- six months long at the time."

How has the wing and its host base changed most over Mr. Shaud's his nearly four decades of service?

"There are newer and bigger buildings, but when I first started (driving to Duke Field), Highway 85 was a two-lane road all the way to Eglin and you crossed a wooden bridge at the Shoal River," he said. "There were no gate guards and no security, because there was no need for that at a high level. Now the access is a lot tighter, a lot more emphasis on mission, security and fighting terrorists - just a lot more activity that we support.

"Overall there's a lot more reliance on computers and the Internet to do your job," he continued. "When I first came in, you had your tech orders to work by and a form to track what you did. Now you have to go online on the computer to do everything, and it looks like 25 percent of the job is computer related, even though you're turning wrenches on the line."

The new retiree was quick to describe what he'll miss most about his longtime military home.

"I'll really miss the camaraderie," he said. "When I started coming up, everybody took care of everybody whenever they needed help, and they still do," he said. When one of our people needed help, everybody jumped on top of it to help take of them, help their situations and their family.

"While the people in an active duty unit spend maybe two to three years at one station where there's a constant turnover," he said. "With a Reserve unit we're closer, we stay together longer and bond a lot tighter. That bond continues from work through the family and throughout the community."

For Mr. Shaud to take his nearly four decades of expertise and wisdom into retirement is a bitter reality for his fellow 919th MXS maintainers. Master Sgt. Troy Barrow, a power support systems supervisor who has worked alongside him since 1982, said the man they affectionately called "Boo Boo Bookmaster" for his encyclopedic job knowledge, obviously will be very difficult to replace.

"He's always been just like one of the family, and he's been the one that everybody goes to as far all the information," Sergeant Barrow said. "We have a young man who will fill his shoes. But really, how do you fill the shoes of a 38-year veteran, especially in a shop that has gone from 18 full time employees down to just five?"

In view of his exhaustive career experience Mr. Shaud was asked to offer his advice for the wing's junior Airmen.

"My advice to our young people is to work on your education, work on your PME (professional military education) and do what you can to advance, because the more stripes you have, and the more money you make, the better your opportunities in the future," he said. "Work to improve your knowledge, not just in your general area, but other areas that could affect your job. And volunteer, whether it the CFC (Combined Federal Campaign programs) or with the local communities, just work on advancing your knowledge."

As for his immediate post-retirement plans, the longtime veteran insisted he's "not the type of person that can just sit around much," adding that he hopes to find something back in the community.

"I'd like to go back into some of the other fields that I've previously been in, or maybe a new career altogether."