Serving through the season: Staff Sgt. Jacob Chavez

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Brian Ferguson
  • Air Force Print News
SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) --  Training the men and women of the Air Force is a huge responsibility for military training instructors at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.

Staff Sgt. Jacob Chavez takes on this responsibility every day, devoting a majority of his time, including holidays, to mentor and teach trainees the importance of the jobs they will soon take on.

"You always want to spend time with your family during the holidays," said Sergeant Chavez, "but these Airmen are sacrificing their holidays to be here, too."

The 12-year Air Force veteran from Seboyeta, N.M., has been a military training instructor for the last three years. He comes from a B-1 Lancer crew chief background, and knows the importance of attention to detail and training. So, as people enjoy this holiday season, Sergeant Chavez will be training new Airmen to survive in today's Air Force.

"It's rewarding to turn civilians into trainees and then trainees into Airmen. That's what keeps us working all the time. There is nothing I would rather do this holiday season," Sergeant Chavez said.

Sergeant Chavez, a graduate of Laguna Acoma High School, is a member of the 322nd Training Squadron and is a military drill and ceremonies NCO. He and his fellow instructors work an average of 12 to 14 hours daily.

His wife, Melba, 3-year-old son, Caesar, and 7-year-old son, Xavier, are used to the long hours, and support him in every way. Sergeant Chavez's mother, father and sister still reside in New Mexico.

"Since I have been an MTI, I have never gone home for the holidays," Sergeant Chavez said.

"The trainees still need to learn and train," he said.

With his highly polished boots and perfectly pressed uniform, Sergeant Chavez leads by example and knows the importance of the skills he is teaching these trainees. Airmen in Iraq, Afghanistan, Ecuador, South Korea and other world hot spots are using these same skills every day.

"We try to prepare them for the fact that they will most likely deploy within a year of graduating technical school," Sergeant Chavez said. "Everything they learn here will help them in the field when they deploy."

"We give them the discipline required to responsibly protect this country," he said.

Christmas day was a non-training day for the basic training squadrons. This gave the students and instructors a little time off to relax and celebrate the holiday. However, New Year's day is a training day.

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