BDG brothers bond at same duty station

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Faith Brodkorb
  • 93d Air Ground Operations Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Many Airmen consider the hardest part of military life to be family separation. Saying goodbye to a spouse before a deployment, missing another birthday while on a temporary duty, and leaving behind friends at every duty station never gets easier.

Most Airmen see it as par for the course; being away from spouses, children, parents and siblings is just another part of the job. Sometimes, though, fate makes an exception.

In the case of two brothers, Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Gallagher and Master Sgt. Timmy Gallagher, after years apart, these two Security Forces Airmen are stationed together here for the first time in the 820th Base Defense Group (BDG).

After talking with the Gallaghers together, their playful jabs and witty comebacks made it obvious how close they are. They both joined the Air Force in 2004, but Timmy, the younger brother, beat Kevin to the punch by two weeks.

“It was something I wanted to do since I can remember, kindergarten at least. I always knew I wanted to join the military,” said Timmy, 820th BDG non-commissioned officer in-charge of current operations. “Our cousin, who is now a colonel, ended up talking me into the Air Force and coming to Security Forces.”

Kevin wasn’t far behind.

“That was 2004. The wars were going hot and heavy, and I wanted to serve,” said Kevin.

They both joined the Security Forces career field and wanted to join the 820th BDG as soon as they could. For Timmy it was his first assignment, but Kevin wasn’t so lucky.

“I’ve always wanted to be in the 820th from the day I joined,” said Kevin, 820th Combat Operations Squadron superintendent of logistics. “I’ve tried several times and couldn’t make it happen. This job came up on Equal Plus, and I said, ‘I’ve got to do that.’ So I pushed the button.”

Kevin and Timmy have never been stationed together before. Now that they are, they are enjoying it as much as they can.

“Our cousin Chad told me that the hardest thing about being in the military is being away from family,” said Kevin. “And so when I got the chance to be stationed with [Timmy]…you just don’t get that opportunity very often.”

Kevin said he was even lucky enough to move into a house just a block away from his brother, to which Timmy joked, “He wants to be just like me.”

The Gallagher Brothers work with each other around the 820th BDG a few times a week. For some siblings, working in the same organization would not be pleasant, but when these two were asked about it, they responded with more jokes.

“It’s pure hell!” said Timmy sarcastically. He went on to say, “I was kind of nervous about it at first, but it has actually been pretty easy going so far. He hasn’t done anything to really get on my nerves… yet. I think our dynamic together in the group plays really, really well.”

Timmy and Kevin even worked together on the 823d Base Defense Squadron’s Mission Readiness Exercise (MRX) in March 2019. Timmy was the lead planner for the exercise and Kevin lead a team that coordinated the logistics that made the MRX happen.

As the conversation ended, it was clear the Gallagher brothers are dedicated to the Air Force and the security forces career field, but somehow the conversation always circled back around to family and their funny, brotherly banter.

“I want to give a shout out to my mom,” said Kevin.

“He is a huge momma’s boy,” replied Timmy.

When so many Airmen are separated from the families, it’s good to see two brothers making the most of their time together.