Clergy Day @ Barksdale Air Force Base
On Thursday, February 24th, the Chaplains' Office at Barksdale Air Force Base ("BAFB") hosted its first Clergy Day in the past several years. The purpose of the Clergy Day is three-fold:
To recognize the important contributions the local clergy from the Shreveport-Bossier City area make in caring for the spiritual needs of BAFB airmen and their families;
To give local clergy a big picture understanding of BAFB's mission and to see where BAFB airmen and their families work and live; and
To give local clergy an understanding of the BAFB Chapel's mission, to build further relationships and partnerships, and to plan and vision to better serve the spiritual needs of BAFB airmen and their families.
Highlights of the Clergy Day for me included meeting such a diverse group of clergy from the Shreveport-Bossier City area, getting to know the dynamic BAFB Chaplaincy team and touring the 22,000 acre base facilities.
As an "Air Force Brat," who spent a majority of my youth on or around U.S. Air Force bases, my time at BAFB was nostalgic and inspiring. I don't think I'll ever shake off the way the smell of jet fuel and diesel exhaust gives me a sense of home and the warm-fuzzies. Strange, I know.
Throughout the day on base, our local clergy were reminded of the chronic pressures our airmen and their families endure on our behalf as they serve our country. So many of our young airmen are far, far from home and their greatest need/desire is a sense of belonging.
As a small, yet growing congregation, All Saints Anglican Church is in a position to welcome our airmen and their families into our midst with open hearts and open arms. Offering warm hospitality is one of the things we do best.
I invite you to join me in praying the All Saints Anglican congregation, and the numerous church communities throughout our area, will increasingly become for our airmen a place of respite, a source of inspiration and comfort, and a place to belong.
America's best deserve our very best.