Home > News > Article Display

Team Malmstrom honors service retirees

By Airman 1st Class Katrina Heikkinen, 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs / Published May 08, 2012

PRINT | E-MAIL
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. -- Rainy conditions didn't stop more than 200 military retirees from coming to Malmstrom Air Force Base for the annual Retiree Appreciation Weekend, April 27-29.

The weekend kicked off with a formal retreat ceremony at the base auditorium. Col. H.B. Brual, 341st Missile Wing commander, welcomed the guests of honor and provided opening remarks.

"This weekend we pay tribute to their [retirees] courage, sacrifice and service to this nation," Brual said. "As active-duty members, we stand on the shoulders of great men and women who built this nation into the military we serve today."

Malmstrom's Honor Guard folded the flag as retired U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Ron Sperandeo dressed in period uniform and played taps on his bugle for the special event. An array of colors and generations filled the stage as active-duty and service retirees saluted the flag.

"Retired Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coastguardsmen have modeled great leadership . . . have crafted the leaders today so that we may advance the military and protect our nation as they once did," Brual said.

Following the retreat ceremony, retirees gathered at the Grizzly Bend for a no-host social. For those traveling from afar or from out-of-state, this was a chance to get reacquainted with friends from last year's event.

Saturday started early with the clinic opening at 7 a.m. Retirees were greeted by numerous booths at the front entrance. Airmen mingled with retirees while performing blood pressure and body mass index examinations. The Health and Wellness Center discussed healthy eating options and provided smoothies. Fresh fruit, cookies, coffee and other goodies were available as retirees leisurely walked down the halls of the clinic to receive their health screenings. The Orthopedic Center of Montana of Benefis Healthcare Systems returned to perform heel scans to measure bone density. Sletten Cancer Institute provided informational brochures as well as preventative measures for the retirees.

Following a morning of free medical procedures, including lab work, and dental and eye examinations, the Elkhorn Dining Facility served a brunch for the retirees. Members of the Retiree's Council also greeted visitors to the Commissary and Base Exchange.

The chapel provided a fact-finding event at 1 p.m. Col. Robert Stanley, 341st MW vice commander, briefed on the base infrastructure while Capt. Kevin Cayton, 341st MW chief of legal assistance, discussed wills, trusts and powers of attorney. Other briefings included casualty affairs, Veterans Affairs and the Social Security office.

Most retirees gathered at the Grizzly Bend for a formal appreciation dinner to conclude the weekend April 28. Col. Mark Zimmerhanzel, 819th RED HORSE Squadron commander, was the guest speaker for the dinner that concluded the special weekend.

"I get a great feeling of being able to do something to help the retirees and bring them together to show them our active-duty counterparts still care and remember us," said Denis Miller, director of the Retiree Activities Office.
USAF Comments Policy
If you wish to comment, use the text box below. AF reserves the right to modify this policy at any time.

This is a moderated forum. That means all comments will be reviewed before posting. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We will not post comments that contain abusive or vulgar language, spam, hate speech, personal attacks, violate EEO policy, are offensive to other or similar content. We will not post comments that are spam, are clearly "off topic", promote services or products, infringe copyright protected material, or contain any links that don't contribute to the discussion. Comments that make unsupported accusations will also not be posted. The AF and the AF alone will make a determination as to which comments will be posted. Any references to commercial entities, products, services, or other non-governmental organizations or individuals that remain on the site are provided solely for the information of individuals using this page. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the AF, DoD, the United States, or its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority, or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service, or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying AF endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

Any comments that report criminal activity including: suicidal behaviour or sexual assault will be reported to appropriate authorities including OSI. This forum is not:

  • This forum is not to be used to report criminal activity. If you have information for law enforcement, please contact OSI or your local police agency.
  • Do not submit unsolicited proposals, or other business ideas or inquiries to this forum. This site is not to be used for contracting or commercial business.
  • This forum may not be used for the submission of any claim, demand, informal or formal complaint, or any other form of legal and/or administrative notice or process, or for the exhaustion of any legal and/or administrative remedy.

AF does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by individuals on this forum is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. AF may not be able to verify, does not warrant or guarantee, and assumes no liability for anything posted on this website by any other person. AF does not endorse, support or otherwise promote any private or commercial entity or the information, products or services contained on those websites that may be reached through links on our website.

Members of the media are asked to send questions to the public affairs through their normal channels and to refrain from submitting questions here as comments. Reporter questions will not be posted. We recognize that the Web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to manage federal resources, moderating and posting of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be read and posted as early as possible; in most cases, this means the next business day.

For the benefit of robust discussion, we ask that comments remain "on-topic." This means that comments will be posted only as it relates to the topic that is being discussed within the blog post. The views expressed on the site by non-federal commentators do not necessarily reflect the official views of the AF or the Federal Government.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, DoD ID number, OSI Case number, phone numbers or email addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include personally identifiable information in your comment, such as your name, that comment may or may not be posted on the page. If your comment is posted, your name will not be redacted or removed. In no circumstances will comments be posted that contain Social Security numbers, DoD ID numbers, OSI case numbers, addresses, email address or phone numbers. The default for the posting of comments is "anonymous", but if you opt not to, any information, including your login name, may be displayed on our site.

Thank you for taking the time to read this comment policy. We encourage your participation in our discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.