VOL. 64 N O. 14
T H U R S DAY, A P R I L 2 , 2020
SPACE OBSERVER P E T E R S O N
A I R
Peterson Air Force Base increases to HPCON Charlie
F O R C E
B A S E
Letter from the Command Chief By Chief Master Sgt. Jacob Simmons
By 21st Space Wing Public Affairs | 21ST SPACE WING PUBLIC AFFAIRS PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. — Peterson Air Force Base officials elevated its health protection condition to HPCON-Charlie March 25 to further safeguard service members, community, and the national defense missions supported here. Col. Thomas Falzarano, the 21st Space Wing and Peterson AFB commander, made this decision based on direction from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of the Air Force, and expert counsel and coordination with local medical, operations, and mission support units across Peterson AFB. HPCON Charlie is implemented during a public health emergency when there is substantial risk of a disease being spread, and includes social distancing and potential shelter-
in-place orders, as well as restrictions on in-person meetings and official travel. These numerous actions will impact many in the community who live, work, and receive services from Peterson AFB, but are essential to helping maintain the overall health of our members and ensure mission readiness. A complete list of actions can be viewed at https://www.peterson.af.mil/Coronavirus/. The base leadership team stands ready to assist with special or unique circumstances, and will adjust additional services based on continuous health risk assessments. Base leadership asks for patience and flexibility from all facets of the community as we all navigate through this viral pandemic.
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SPACE MISSIONS SUPPORT WHOLE-OF-GOVERNMENT PAGE 2
Knights, Our #1 priority right now taking care of you and your families. We understand that the impact of our current environment can certainly take a toll on your well-being. Your leaders know that living in isolation, being locked in, and having too much idleness, are NOT recipes for wellness or readiness - especially when it’s hard to see light at the end of the tunnel. In fact, having nothing to occupy too much time, time that was once all but spoken for, may cause more harm (or at least a different harm) than what we are all trying to prevent. We know you crave purpose and meaningfulness - you want to be active - you need to contribute - you need to stay connected (and not just online). Our Airmen don’t want their time wasted away, day after day. To the contrary, many of you decided to serve to make your time matter more. We understand that being told to “stay at home” is not rewarding. Maybe it’s nice for a few days, but long-term isolation isn’t without issues; actually, solitary confinement is one of the worst forms of punishment - some may call it torture. Myself and the rest of your leadership would ask that you be on the lookout for the negatives of being shipwrecked on an island or of being unable to get away for a moment, and make sure you are taking care of one another. I would ask that you please actively check in on each other to see how your teammates and their families are doing and if they are getting the care/support and analog attention needed. Thank you again for continuing to lead us through! Very Respectfully Chief Master Sgt. Jacob Simmons
NEWS 1-12 | CLASSIFIED 13 | CROSSWORD 14
EXECUTIVE ORDER CALLING UP AIR FORCE RESERVE MEDICS PAGE 4
AF WEEK IN PHOTOS
INNOVATION IS KEY
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