Don Pellikan Rotarian of the Day

Don Pellikan was the Rotarian of the Day.  His guest speaker was Brigadier General Scott Kindsvater, Commander of the 82nd Training Wing at Sheppard Air Force Base. The General spoke about his responsibilities as Commander, and noted that the training aspect of his command is well run and very effective. Mostly, he fights for resources, training equipment, and more training opportunities. He also told us that he feels his most important role is the training of airmen to be good citizens, and to be a credit to the Air Force. He has created programs that teach the young men and women under his command to respect themselves, and each other. He is also concerned with teaching them the skills they need to succeed in society. The training wing has been selected to train a large number of Saudi pilots, and this will include teaching them English!

 

When asked about the future of the base, and concerns over water availability, the General praised the leadership of the county and cities as good partners with him and the base. The base's 75 year history is a testament to the location and mission of Sheppard. The large airspace, the support of the community, and the large area of land surrounding he base are quite valuable to the operations. The General was unconcerned about the issue of water, saying we will all get through this together. He also told us that the closing of the golf course at the base will save $10,000.00 and 400,000 gallons of water per month. With this and other cost cutting measures, the base operates in the black with no tax payer money.

 

Also in attendance was Danny Taylor, along with many of his staff and school principles who were honored with a fine lunch prepared by the Vernon College Culinary Academy students.