I Joined the Air Force To See the World and Was Stationed At WAFB
It was 40 years ago on May 31, 1978. I was working in radio in Sedalia and I decided to join the Air Force. Little did I know that my quest to see the world would be squelched.
Funny how time flies and how you look back and say what if? I wanted to join the Air Force when I was in high school under the delayed-enlistment program. I would have joined early in my senior year but for whatever reason, I decided to hold off.
I moved to Sedalia in the late summer of 1977 to start work at KSIS-FM which would eventually be changed to KCBW. (You know it know as one of our sister stations-92.3/BOB-FM)
After working at the station for about five or six months, I decided I wanted to follow through with joining the Air Force. I hooked up with a recruiter in town and got the ball rolling.
After I went through my basic training at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, Texas, I went to Air Base Ground Defense training. Some where during this process, we were given a sheet to fill out. It was called your "Dream Sheet." This was, what you thought at the time, your ticket to the air force base of your dreams. Of course at the top of the list was Hickam AFB in Hawaii. It was followed by other bases around the world. This young 19-year old was ready to see the other side of the planet. Well, I guess I that wasn't meant to be.
My orders were for Whiteman Air Force Base, 17 miles from where I had signed up to serve Uncle Sam. I'm still waiting to see the world. Let's see what number is that on my bucket list anyway?