Members of the Alaska ANG’s 176th Wing at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, rescued the pilot of a single-engine floatplane that crashed about 25 miles south of Anchorage. An HH-60W Jolly Green II with the 210th Rescue Squadron, carrying two pararescuemen (PJ) from the 212th RS, was preparing to participate in the Arctic Thunder Open House Joint Force Demonstration on Aug. 9 when the base’s Alaska Rescue Coordination Center received a signal from the 406 MHz Emergency Locator Transmitter on a Cessna 185 that crashed near Trapper Joe Lake. “The Cessna 185 basically ran out of lake on floats and went into the trees,” said Master Sgt. Harry Bromley, a 212th PJ flying his last rescue before retiring. “It was upside down, and the patient self-extricated.” The pilot, who wasn’t named, had minor injuries.
Lael “Lolly” Cowell Anderson was named the 2025 Key Support Liaison of the Year at the squadron, group, center, and numbered air force levels. And that’s just the beginning. She was selected as the Armed Forces Insurance Patrick Space Force Base Spouse of the Year and nominated as Air Combat Command’s Joan Orr Air Force Spouse of the Year. Anderson provides support and normalcy for her family; her husband Lt. Col. Anthony Anderson, 709th Support Sq., AFTAC; and their three children, Collin, Cal, and Cami; and she also finds time to support and mentor others. Anderson authored an Air Force-wide resiliency guide that shaped lifesaving crisis intervention policy, and created an installation-wide food-aid communication strategy. “Military spouses are the silent strength behind our mission accomplishment,” said Col. Gabriel Avilla, 709th Support Group commander.
U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Eniola Oke, 49th Aerial Port Squadron cargo representative, Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind., was crowned Miss Indiana USA at the 2026 pageant. As a student, she founded the Military Outreach Society, which focuses on service, community building, veterans and their families, as well as providing mental health resources and support. Oke sees her passion for service as a key factor to her earning the title. “As a proud Nigerian American, I want to be an inspiration for young girls. It doesn’t matter where you come from. You can absolutely achieve anything you put your mind to,” she said. She is currently pursuing a degree in Community Health at Indiana University.
Staff Sgt. Kyle Wirth, 375th Logistics Readiness Sq. fleet management and analysis journeyman, Scott AFB, Ill., pulls double duty, serving as a volunteer firefighter with the Swansea Fire Department 30 hours a month or more. After work at the 375th, he could be dispatched to a house fire, crash, or medical emergency. The parallels in both jobs are apparent. Teamwork, leadership and physical fitness, along with building trust in the community, help him live out the Core Value of Service Before Self. Wirth said, “Whether I am supporting global operations on base or responding to a local emergency down the street, my goal is to lead by example and show that we are here to support our community inside and outside the gates.”
Tech. Sgt. Andrea J. Reyes (center), an Enlisted Professional Military Education instructor supervisor, received the 2025 GEICO Military Service Award for the National Guard. Reyes, who works at the Chief Master Sgt. Paul H. Lankford Enlisted Professional Military Education Center at McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base, Tenn., was selected from nominees representing the Army National Guard and Air National Guard nationwide. The annual award recognizes enlisted members in each of the military services and the National Guard for their achievements in their communities in addition to their work in the military. Reyes started the first Airman’s Attic at McGhee Tyson ANGB, providing essential uniform items to students and staff. She organized VA home loan briefings for students, and worked on cultural and recreational events for Airmen, students, and families.
Prior-enlisted U.S. Space Force 1st Lt. Thomas Moriarty takes the military’s renewed emphasis on fitness seriously. At 48 years old, Moriarty set six USA Powerlifting records in April 2026 at the Hawaii State Championships. Three days a week he gets up at 3 a.m. and trains for more than two hours before reporting for duty as an operations officer. He believes fitness is about helping others realize what they are capable of. “To have the knowledge of fitness, weight management, strength training and just be able to pay that forward to everyone I come across” motivates him, Moriarty said. Consistency makes readiness sustainable.
Wyatt Rabe (center) won the Air Force Institute of Technology Foundation’s Civilian Young Alumni Award in July. Graduating from AFIT in 2023 with a master’s in material science, he currently works at the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center where he reviews contracts and contractor work as an acquisition engineer. Rabe ensures weapons requirements are met and Air Force dollars are being used efficiently. “I can’t name very many engineers who have been able to do the things that I’ve done, especially so early in their careers,” he said. “I’ve had opportunities to guide groups of subject-matter experts who have 20-plus years of experience. Being recognized [by AFIT] reinforces that I’m doing the right thing.”