Big Brother reunites with ‘little’

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Nathan Putz
  • 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. (AFPN) --  After losing his life possessions to a fire, his parents separating and losing motivation to do daily activities, one boy found help from an Airman now stationed here.

As a preteen, Xzavior Hill said he had no direction to his life. His goal was simply to pass each day with as little effort as possible.

“I was just another kid in the crowd,” he said. “I was not the most popular or best athlete, nor did I make the best grades.”

At that time, his mother decided to introduce him to the Big Brothers-Big Sisters program. After the program learned all about Xzavior, such as his hobbies, likes and dislikes, he was matched with Joe Hunt, then a major stationed at McConnell Air Force Base, Kan.

“When I was first told that I had been matched with someone in the Air Force, I had no clue what to expect,” Xzavior said. “I thought he would be an extremely rigid, straight-faced Soldier with no emotions. I was nervous and a little frightened of what was to come.”

What he found was a pleasant surprise that changed his life.

“After meeting Joe for the first time, I realized that he is one of the most easy-going people I’ve ever known, and while spending a little time together, Joe and I found that we are very similar,” he said.

As time progressed, Xzavior and now Lieutenant Colonel Hunt, inspector general for the 92nd Air Refueling Wing here, grew closer and their relationship soon epitomized the “Big-Little” definition.

“As far as my school life, my test scores increased, and my grades began to improve. I can remember the times when I would be stressed out from studying and worried about how I’d do on an upcoming test. I would talk to Joe, who would always be there to lend a positive word,” Xzavior said.

Eventually Xzavior began to further develop his personality. When Colonel Hunt showed him a little about his job in the Air Force, as well as some of the perks of being an officer, Xzavior said he knew this was what he wanted to do.

“I realized that I would never be able to live his lifestyle without a college degree. So as a young teen, I resolved that I would go to college directly after high school,” Xzavior said.

As Colonel Hunt’s time at McConnell came to a close, Xzavior was about to enter high school. He had signed up for Junior ROTC, though not knowing what it entailed, so he called Colonel Hunt. The colonel encouraged Xzavior to stay with it, as it would prepare him for ROTC in college, and Xzavior said he knew it would open the way to becoming an Air Force officer.

“To this day, I am thankful that I made that decision. (Junior) ROTC proved to be my niche in high school life. I finally belonged to something. It led to bigger and better things,” Xzavior said.

After excelling on the drill team, Xzavior was named commander of the new armed drill team category, which set the stage for the rest of his involvement in Junior ROTC. Xzavior said he also shot to the top of his cadet class by studying hard, performing well in all his academic studies and showing his leadership potential in class.

All of this hard work in the first three years of high school resulted in his selection as the district commander of Wichita Public Schools Junior ROTC and leadership programs. During his senior year, he spoke about the programs to the school board, he briefed the Kansas State Legislature on his goals and conducted a roundtable discussion with Kansas Senator Pat Roberts. To top it all off, he learned that he had received an appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy Preparatory School with a scholarship.

“Colonel Hunt would probably disagree with me, but I believe his career serves as one of the driving forces behind my life’s goals. Without knowing him, I never would have taken the first step of joining (Junior) ROTC,” Xzavior said. “Without (Junior) ROTC, I never would have known of the Air Force Academy. Without his help and guidance, I never would have been able to become the young man that I am, nor been able to achieve that status that I have.”

Now Xzavior is a cadet second class at the Air Force Academy and plans to become a civil engineer officer.

“I thank God for sending Joe Hunt into my life. And I must thank Big Brothers-Big Sisters for helping create one of the best friendships I’ve ever had,” he said. (Information provided by a letter from Cadet 2nd Class Xzavior Hill to friends of the Big Brother-Big Sister program.)