All In The Family

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Dylan Gentile
  • 919th Special Operations Wing
DUKE FIELD, Fla. --  It’s often said there is a special bond between fathers and daughters. There’s an even stronger connection for one father and daughter in the 919th Special Operations Wing who share a legacy of service that spans generations here on the Emerald Coast.

Senior Airman Vivian Adel Pizzo, a crew chief for the 919th Special Operations Maintenance Squadron, works in the same shop as her dad, Senior Master Sgt. Carl Pizzo, occupational safety manager for the 919th Special Operations Wing safety Office, worked 15 years ago.

Vivian was influenced by growing up in a family dedicated to military service at an early age. Her mother was a U.S. Air Force contractor, her father a crew chief, and her grandfather a Marine. She joined the junior Reserve Officer Training Corps in high school and enlisted in the Air Force Reserve after graduating.

“I saw how much my dad enjoyed his job and how much the Air Force did for him,” said Vivian. “I was like well, I wanna do that too.”

Vivian’s family was excited when her dad came home from deployments. In addition to getting to spend time with him, they would receive gifts and nik-naks from different parts of the world.

When he was home, Carl and Vivian had a shared interest in working on cars, which would later lead her to want to work at the 919th SOMXS.

“Everyone in the shop refers to me as ‘Little Pizzo,’” said Vivian. “It can be kind of annoying, but I do enjoy it.”

When Vivian is on active duty orders, she’s able to get lunch with her father. They both schedule their lunch breaks at the same time, and the maintenance shop is a short distance from the headquarters building where Carl now works.

“That really made me feel cool,” said Carl. “I wasn’t able to do that with my father, so he was envious that my 21 year old daughter would want to have lunch with me.”

Three generations of their family have served in the military, including Carl’s step father, and now Vivian carries on that legacy.

“The 919th has always been my family,” said Carl. “But having my daughter in the 919th SOMXS truly makes it feel like home to me.”