130th Airlift Wing Unveils Remodeled Dining Facility

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Eugene Crist
  • 130th Airlift Wing
MCLAUGHLIN AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, Charleston, W.Va. --  The 130th Airlift Wing unveiled its newly remodeled dining facility March 4, 2018, alongside West Virginia Army and Air National Guard leadership and command staff from the 130th AW. 

“When I took command of the wing in 2015, I believed, as I still do, that its important for those serving now to understand the deep heritage we have here at McLaughlin Air National Guard Base,” said Col. Johnny Ryan, 130th AW commander. 

After seeing similar heritage rooms at Lackland Air Force Base and here locally at Thomas Memorial Hospital, Ryan tasked the unit’s superintendents with the redesign of the dining facility.

The first stage of the remodel was completed in November with the installation of booth seating, new furniture and custom tile floors. The final stage was completed in February with adornment of the wall with past and current images and a unit history in the form of a timeline, which greets visitors to the dining facility. 

“What you see here is a culmination of Col. Ryan’s vision and the hard work from members of the enlisted councils,” said 130th AW Command Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Cecil. “The team assembled really carried the water for this and as you can see, they really nailed the commanders intent.”

The dining facility adornments were contracted and designed by Mark Wolfe, of Mark Wolfe Design, and installation was completed by Bill Price and Greg Harold. Senior Master Sgt. Joe Hinchman, Senior Master Sgt. Kevin Chestnut, Senior Master Sgt. Travis Walker, Master Sgt. Bob Barker, and Tech. Sgt. Eugene Crist all had a hand in the final selection of pictures and placement.

“I am excited about what I see here and the initiatives taken to focus the Airmen of this wing on its heritage,” said Maj. Gen. James Hoyer, the Adjutant General of the West Virginia National Guard. “Its collectively important for us as an organization to understand who’s shoulders we stand on and the heritage we draw from as decedents of those 98 militia men that marched from modern day West Virginia to join the Continental Army during the Beeline March.”

Ryan said in closing, “When I was a kid growing up, my family would gather around the dinner table daily and we would grow as a family. That is my hope for this dining facility that this gives our Airmen a place to celebrate our heritage and grow as a unit.”