Nine servicemembers and one enlistee had the privileged opportunity to raise their right hand and receive the Oath of Office from the vice president of the United States.

During a recent visit to Scott Air Force Base, Ill., Vice President Richard Cheney assisted 375th Airlift Wing commander Col. Raymond Rottman in performing a mass re-enlistment March 21, for Airmen, Soldiers and one soon-to-be Air Force member.

Cheney’s visit to Scott came on the day the U.S. observed the third anniversary of Operation Iraqi Freedom. This is the first time Mr. Cheney visited Scott AFB while holding the vice presidency.

A crowd of more than 2,300 cheering servicemembers gathered in Hangar One to greet the vice president. The Rally kicked off as Air Mobility Command’s Band of Mid-America “Starlifter” entertained the crowd with patriotic tunes while a slide show of photographs depicting military efforts flashed on screens.

Colonel Rottman introduced the servicemembers and the recruit who were to receive the Oath of Office. Then, the vice president took the stage.

“This is a fantastic team at Scott Air Force Base: You stick together, you bring out the best in each other, and you get the job done for America. And our whole country is proud of you,” he said. “I am here very simply to say ‘thanks’ to the men and women here at the 375th Airlift Wing and its tenant units on the base. I admire your commitment to discipline, to duty and to service above self.

"It's a privilege to be in your company, and I bring the respect and good wishes of our commander in chief, George W. Bush."

Vice President Cheney then assisted Colonel Rottman in performing the mass re-enlistment. The voices spoke simultaneously as they repeated what was spoken to them, “I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” All eyes were on the stage as the crowd watched and listened to the group standing tall on the stage stating the last words of the oath,“that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the president of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”

After the last words of the oath were spoken, American flags waved high in the air and the roaring crowds’ cheers and applauding echoed though out the vast interior of the hangar. Cheney shook hands with each of the servicemembers standing tall and proud on the stage. Thousands that day had witnessed first-hand their commitment to serve the United States.

“It was an experience of a lifetime, it is a chance that most people never get and it was an honor to have my fiancée and her mother there to witness it,” said Senior Airman Joseph Terrell, 375th Medical Operations mental health technician. “It made me proud to wear the uniform.”

After the rally, Scott members sent off the vice president with the Air Force song. 

Reenlisting were:
Tech. Sgt. Dwayne Leadbetter
Staff Sgt. Angela Grannis
Senior Airman Joseph Terrell
Staff Sgt. Rebecca Place
Senior Airman Randall Lederman 
Staff Sgt. Morgan Dixon
Staff Sgt. Kholifa Kabia
Tech. Sgt. Keith Moser
Master Sgt. Eric Ervin

Enlisting in the Air Force: Kyle McQuiston