Quality of life issues among areas of focus as American Legion delegation from the Department of Florida and national headquarters visits Patrick Space Force Base.
Quality of life issues such as housing, daycare and medical services were among the areas of focus as an American Legion delegation from the Department of Florida and national headquarters visited Patrick Space Force Base.
The Sept. 23-24 tour was the latest visit by Legionnaires through the Base Assessment and Servicemember Experience (BASE) program, which was established by The American Legion to address issues facing military members and their families at various installations.
Located in Cocoa Beach, Fla., the installation is home of Space Launch Delta 45, the command responsible for launch operations and infrastructure at Cape Canaveral.
“We are a space force base that relies on the Air Force to support our operations,” said Col. Brian Chatman, commanding officer of SLD 45. Chatman pointed to personnel shortages as a major challenge at Patrick. (STORY CONTINUES BELOW)
Though officials did not specifically mention continuing resolutions as the cause of the vacancies, the absence of long-term congressionally approved budgets has been a widespread concern cited by military leaders during other BASE visits.
“So, we have 650 earned (and) unfunded validated positions. We also have a deployed posture that we have to support for the DAF (Department of the Air Force) around the world,” Chatman said.
The military vacancies run the gamut from firefighters to medical support positions. Even so, Chatman said SLD 45 was up to meeting future challenges in spite of the unfilled billets. “We'll all continue to protect and defend here for everything we have going, whether it's the 17,000 sorties that we had here at Patrick last year and 12 paradrop operations (or) whether it was the 109 space launches we did up at the Cape,” he said. “It would be awesome if it was a hiring issue because we'd be able to get by that. It's more of a funding issue and just problems holistically across the Department of the Air Force.”
The medical and pharmacy services can be especially stretched during the winter “snowbird” season, when the local population of military retirees spikes. The pharmacists dispense 800-1,000 prescriptions daily and serve about 63,000 patients annually.
The joint honor guard unit at SLD 45 consists of Air Force and Space Force personnel. Its two busiest areas of operation are the Cape Canaveral National Cemetery and the South Florida National Cemetery, though it is not unusual for the honor guard to be sent on assignments throughout the state.
“We would like to provide retirees with a firing party, but right now we’re down to like two- or three-man teams for most of our funerals,” said Technical Sgt. Cody Ihle. “Last Friday, we had eight details, and I think seven of them were funerals.”
Kevin Mook, adjutant for The American Legion Department Florida, said posts there can assist with the funeral details.
“I see two areas where we could do more,” Mook said. “First, servicemembers living in the dorms could use more support and our posts would gladly help. They only need to be asked. Second, the base honor guard is stretched thin. Our posts can help with funeral honors and rifle team details to lighten their load.”
From 1940-1947, the base operated as Naval Air Station Banana River before transforming into an Air Force Base, and subsequently a Space Force Base in 2020.
“The visit to Patrick Space Force Base highlighted the installation’s strong commitment to supporting servicemembers and their families and identified opportunities to build on that foundation,” explained Hanna Begun, policy analyst for The American Legion National Security Division. “The installation has made meaningful quality-of-life investments, including its Guardian Resilience Team, STARBASE STEM education program and extensive transition assistance resources. Continued attention to staffing, facility needs and community engagement could further strengthen these efforts.
“The visit also underscored the important role The American Legion can play in connecting veterans, retirees and community partners with airmen, guardians and their families to expand mentorship, strengthen community ties and help address quality-of-life concerns."
While servicemembers have diverse interests, most of the guardians and airmen who met with the Legion seemed to enjoy their duty-station.
“For me, being able to support the launches that we do here is an 8-year-old’s dream,” said Spec-3 Trevor Johnson. He added that leaders in his squadron are attentive to the needs and concerns of all its personnel. “We get to be in those meetings to say, ‘this is what I’m experiencing, and this is what I think I can do about it.’ And people in positions of authority are able to listen to those. So, it truly is a unique and useful experience being here, where even though there is a large pool of retirees, it’s such a small tight-knit community for those of us that are here.” (STORY CONTINUES BELOW)
Though his schedule prevented him from visiting Patrick Space Force Base, National Commander Jay Bowen emphasized the importance of the BASE program during his report to The American Legion National Executive Committee on Oct. 7. “These BASE visits are enormously helpful to our efforts as advocates,” Bowen said. “Not only do they help with our communications to Congress, but they also send an important message to members of the military that they have friends in The American Legion who care about their wellbeing and success.”
Bowen added that American Legion posts and departments do not need a “national headquarters presence” in order to visit local military commands. “Make it part of your routine and the routine of posts that are located in military communities,” he suggested. “When visiting these bases, do so in the spirit of friendship and advocacy. We are actually prohibited from membership recruitment on these visits. If people ask to join on their own, that’s one thing. But that isn’t the purpose of our visits and could lead to a ban from the base.”
It’s already part of the routine of several Florida posts, according to Mook. “Our support is already making a difference,” he said. “Several local posts provide meals for the spouses of deployed members, and the (Patrick) base commander made a point of recognizing that support. The Department of Florida American Legion Riders also buy Christmas presents for every child of a deployed member.”
Department of Florida Second Vice Commander Rick Orzechowski is a Vietnam-era U.S. Air Force veteran. From dorm-life to recreational activities, today’s Space Force bears little resemblance to the military in which he served. “They are doing so much with so little, and they are doing so much more for their people than when I was in the service,” said Orzechowski.
As private and public space exploration continues to expand, so likely will the mission requirements of SLD-45.
“Back in 2010, we did maybe nine launches a year,” Col. Peter Choi, SLD 45 deputy commander, said. “Fast forward, we’re breaking records. So, it’s not the same Patrick it was 15 years ago.”
It’s a story that through congressional testimony and its media outlets, The American Legion will gladly tell.
- Security