JSUPT JOURNAL by 2Lt James Justice 
This is a journal from 2nd Lt. James Justice, Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training Class 08-15, who is providing an inside look into JSUPT training at Vance. Lieutenant Justice is writing journal entries to describe in his own words the rigors and excitement of pilot training. The goal is to give readers a peek at the hard work students put into becoming the best pilots in the world.

Allison Greco, a committed volunteer and wife, was chosen to compete for the title of Mrs. Oklahoma America from a field of applicants throughout the area.
Allison’s husband, 2d Lt. Anthony Greco, a student pilot for the U.S. Air Force stationed at Vance AFB, is extremely proud of her. see blog entry

Enid Resident Crowned Mrs. Oklahoma America Enid Buzz would like to congratulate Mrs. Allison Greco, just crowned Mrs. Oklahoma America 2008. Allison was crowned Mrs. Oklahoma 2008 at the Scottish Rite Theater in Guthrie, Oklahoma on Saturday night, April 12, 2008.(see April ’08 blog archives)

City in Oklahoma Appoints Ambassador to Military Families
By Sharon Foster
American Forces Press Service

June 3, 2009 – Having been part of their tightly knit community all her life, Teresa Vance always has had an interest in military families. Her father made a career out of the Army, serving in World War II and Korea. Her husband was a career surface warfare officer in the Navy, and her son spent four years in the Marine Corps. “I have not been in active duty service, but I have served on the home front by supporting my husband’s military career, raising two very well-adjusted Navy ‘brats’ and helping other military families find ways to meet the challenges of the military lifestyle,” Vance said.

From 1999 through 2002, Vance had what she considered her “dream job” as a deployment specialist at the Navy Fleet and Family Service Center in Norfolk, Va. This position gave her the opportunity to work with commands, service members and military families.

After her husband’s retirement, the couple moved to Lahoma, Okla., outside of Enid, where they both grew up. She quickly accepted a position as Family Readiness Group trainer with the Oklahoma National Guard.

“This gave me an opportunity to still work with military families,” Vance said. “Throughout my husband’s career, I have been an involved spouse and advocate for quality-of-life issues facing military families. I still wanted that connection after he retired.”

Through her work with the Oklahoma National Guard and the Enid City Council, Vance was instrumental in getting the community to start recognizing Military Spouse Appreciation Day and Military Appreciation Month every year.

“She has always advised me on issues relating to military families,” Eric Benson, Enid city manager, said. “She has the compassion and she has the drive to get things done. You can depend on her.”

Honoring her steadfast work with military families, Vance was appointed last month by the Enid City Commission as Enid’s ambassador to military families.

“This new leadership role fits her perfectly,” Benson said. “She has always advised me on military issues, so I wanted to make it official. I was a former base commander, and I’ve known her husband for four years, so I’ve always known her capabilities. I know the value of her in this new role, and I know she understands the military and the community. It just made good sense to do this.”

The goals of Vance’s new position are to build upon existing partnerships between the city and servicemembers and families associated with Vance Air Force Base, the National Guard armory and the U.S. Army Reserve Center. She will market and promote Enid to local military families, asking them to participate in events throughout the community. She will survey local military spouse organizations to get their input on issues most important to them, and she’ll also act as city representative at military events.

“This ambassadorship is just the latest in a long list of efforts to continually improve the quality of life of service members and their families that live in our community,” Vance said. “Enid has always been supportive of our military. We understand the military has an important economic impact on our community and our community’s identity. For 41 consecutive years, we’ve held an enlisted appreciation night.”

Vance said she believes she will bring a different perspective to the city’s partnership with military families because she really has “been there, done that.”

“With my personal background and professional experience, I can relate to the challenges that military families face with each relocation to a new community,” Vance said. “My goal is to have military families’ stay here in Enid [be] a positive one. A local community’s support can have a big impact on a military family’s quality of life, whether they are stationed here for a short time or extended duty.”

Base Exchange

Billeting

Boulevard with flags

Bowling Alley

Civil Engineering

Chapel

Child Development Center

Commissary

Enlisted Dorms

Family Housing

Vance Housing in Winter

Family Readiness Center, Base Library, Retiree Affairs Office, Base Education Office

Base Gym

Headquarters

Logistics

Simulator Building

Single Officer Quarters

Two of the Squadron Buildings

Tower and Base Operations

Vance Clinic

Vance Club - Co-Located Enlisted/Officers

Vance Running Track

Eisenhower Elementary, Base School

New Tennis Courts

Vintage Photos and Events

WWII Barracks at Enid OK

photo from
http://worldwar2pilot.blogspot.com/2009/07/basic-flight-training-2-enid-oklahoma.html
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Feb 10, 1955
 Come Out of the Kitchen, Says the Air Force
The Air Force, in one of those announcements calculated to bring cheer to an airman’s heart, has let it be known that its experiment with KP is doing well. Out in Enid, Oklahoma, where there’s a major air base, there is no more KP. Its place has been taken by a contract arrangement with a national concern to feed the troops. There are four cafeterias, all handled by hired personnel.
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Enid, OK
Bus And Train Collision,
Mar 1942
Posted October 30th, 2008 by Stu Beitler
BUS WRECK KILLS SIX SOLDIERS; 25 OTHERS HURT.
Enid, Okla. — AP –
A Rock Island freight train ripped through a bus today killing six enlisted men in the army air corps.

Twenty-five others were injured in the crash which occurred in a blinding snow storm, half a mile west of Enid.

The list of dead supplied by CAPT. CALVIN W. HAMMOND, press relations officer of the Enid flying school:
 PVT. HERBERT J. TAYLOR, 22, Lake Kerr, Fla.
 PVT. EUGENE L. UNDERWOOD, 23, Rogersville, Pa.
 SGT. EUGENE J. SANDERS, 26, Yoakum, Tex.
 PVT. VERNON OHNSTED, 26, Georgetown, Minn.
 PVT. ROBERT W. WALKER, 23, Bay City, Tex.
 PVT. CYRIL J. MINARCIK, 21, Chicago. 
Critically injured were:
 STAFF SGT. ERNEST M. SHULTS, 25, Forrestburg, Tenn.
 PVT. JOHN LUDLUM, 25, Battle Creek, Mich.
 Names and extent of the injuries of the other victims were not available immediately.
 There were no witnesses to the accident other than the men in the bus and train crew, CAPTAIN HAMMOND said. 
MAJ. W. A. STEPHENS, post adjutant of the Enid flying school, said the bus carried between 35 and 40 men. The accident occurred about 12:15 a.m. at a grade crossing a half mile west of Enid. 
None of the men were pilots, MAJOR STEPHENS said.
The soldiers, based at the Enid flying school, were returning to their barracks about a mile west of Enid when the crash occurred.
 Kingsport Times Tennessee 1942-02-26.
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