Dorm management enriches lives of Airmen

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Kathleen D. Bryant
  • 23d Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  They are known as mentors to some, reliable leaders to others and the Airmen in the dorms trust them to provide the greatest quality of life possible.

Enriching the lives of Airmen is a priority to the five Airman Dorm Leaders working in the 23d Civil Engineer Squadron Consolidated Dorm Management Office, serving more than 650 Airmen living in 13 dorm facilities.

"Our main purpose as dorm managers is to mentor and develop Airmen on a day-to-day basis," said Tech. Sgt. Kevin McHenry, 23d CES NCO in charge of CDMO. "That entails taking care of the facilities and making sure they have the quality of life they need to do their day-to-day missions. We also enforce the standards and conduct that they should have on and off duty.

"If something goes wrong, the Airmen come to us," McHenry added. "If we can fix it, then we do, but if not, we get the 23d CES to come out. We are the liaison between them and the Airmen."

The number of ways ADLs help Airmen extends beyond routine dorm issues, they use their knowledge and life experiences to provide guidance and mentor the Airmen they serve. 

"[The ADLs] helped me realize my full potential," said Senior Airman Dequan Buncomb, 824th Base Defense Squadron fire team member. "I got in some trouble a few months ago and they pushed me to stand out amongst my peers. They gave me the positive push I needed. I knew they had faith in me and it gave me the drive to do what I had to do."

Airmen that live in the dorms carry the responsibility of keeping their living spaces clean and are scheduled by their units to work in the Bay Orderly Program to make sure the facilities provided to them are kept in good condition.

"Each dorm facility is assigned to certain units," said McHenry. "Each week the units send an individual from that building to clean it. They take care of the housekeeping part of the facility by mopping, vacuuming the dayrooms, sweeping and keeping the outside neat."

Upholding the facilities to standard brings a chance to build a network with fellow Airmen as they conduct bay orderly duties.

"In order to do Bay Orderly, you have to work together," said Buncomb. "There's never an instance when you wouldn't need somebody. It gives you the opportunity to branch out and meet people."

The bay orderlies care for the dorms the Air Force has provided to Moody Airmen and the ADLs manage and upkeep the facilities.

"We manage $44 million in assets to maintain the quality of life for the Airmen," said McHenry. "Everything has a certain life span. We keep a record of how long appliances and furniture has been in a dorm and replace them when it's time."

Overseeing that amount of property may be stressful at times, but it's necessary as the ADLs strive for one common goal: molding Airmen into future Air Force leaders.