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Fox Ridge students take part in online forum with U.S. Space Force members
Before they headed off to Winter Break, a group of Fox Ridge Middle School students had an extraordinary opportunity to get a firsthand view into the operations of the U.S. military’s newest branch.
On Dec. 17, Fox Ridge students virtually met with officers from the U.S. Space Force who are currently stationed at the Buckley Air Force base in Aurora. Through a video conference, students had the opportunity to ask the officers about the military branch dedicated to defending U.S. interests in space, a duty that encompasses a wide range of expertise.
“Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. Raymond oversees the Space Force, and he has a huge responsibility, to protect all of space,” said Col. Devin Pepper, commander of the Buckley Space Force garrison. “Protecting space is a daunting challenge – it’s vast. That’s the reason why Space Force came out of the Air Force. We focus on protecting the space domain – it’s on par with land, air, sea.”
Pepper joined other service members from the Buckley garrison, including lieutenants Jordan, Heart and Matthews, and senior airman Matthews. These representatives fielded questions from students on the video call directly, and covered a wide range of topics over the nearly hour-long video session.
The panel talked about the origins of the military branch, its duties, its significance and the skills required to be part of the team that covers responsibilities ranging from flying satellites to protecting U.S. interests in space. U.S. Space Force members spoke about their own backgrounds in the military and in education, highlighting the importance of skills based in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).
At the same time, the Space Force members explained that the military branch requires skills and know-how from a broad range of disciplines. For example, Sr. Airman Matthews handles public affairs for the branch, and works to spread the message about the branch’s mission and work.
Meanwhile, Lt. Sidney Heart, who’s been enlisted in the military for about three years, explained that her academic background wasn’t rooted as solidly in STEM as some of her colleagues. That fact was at first a concern for Heart when she considered joining the Space Force, but she explained that through hard work, perseverance and the application of the skills she’d built up in college and in the military, she found a way to bring value to the organization.
“What I’ve come to find is that you all have these amazing talents and gifts and skills that you’re going to have to learn how to use and how you want to use. Any type of intelligence that you can sharpen to make yourself the best person that you can be is going to be useful to the Space Force,” Heart said. “You find your skills, you sharpen them and you decide that you want to use them for the greater good.”
Pepper added that a requirement for any potential future Space Force member was a sense of curiosity and a willingness to explore new realms.
“I came into the military in 1989, and it has been an enjoyable experience for me and my family. You have to have a sense of adventure. You have a have a sense of change and growth,” Pepper said. “If you have a spirit of adventure and you want to join something that’s on the cutting edge, we’ll take you in the Space Force.”
-- Posted January 8 at 2 P.M.