Miami Heat gives warm reception to Air Force Reserve

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Erik Hofmeyer
  • 482nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
MIAMI --  The 10 newest members of Homestead Air Reserve Base were introduced during a mass enlistment during the halftime of the Miami Heat game on March 14.

The enlistment was the featured event during "Air Force Reserve Night" at American Airlines Arena, and was spearheaded by the 482nd Fighter Wing's Recruiting Office. The large-scale event promoted awareness of the Air Force Reserve, showed support for the enlistees, and reached out to Air Force Junior ROTC organizations in the area. 

Homestead's newest Airmen will serve in careers ranging from aircraft maintenance, medical and civil engineering. As a show of support, they were escorted to center court by around 100 Air Force Junior ROTC cadets from Homestead Senior High School, Hialeah High School and Dillard High School.

Once on the court, the cadets lined up in formation behind the enlistees as the announcer read a brief overview of the Air Force Reserve Command. 2nd Lt. Sabrina Ura, 482nd Mission Support Group executive officer, then read the oath of enlistment over the PA system.

The Air Force Reserve Night also featured the Homestead ARB Honor Guard presenting the colors during the singing of the national anthem, and reservists volunteered to man four informational kiosks scattered around the arena to help raise awareness about the Reserve. The Homestead reservists manning the kiosks were approached by dozens of curious attendees and generated many leads for Reserve recruiters.

"In total, we brought around 200 people to the game between recruiters, reservists who volunteered their time, the Honor Guard and JROTC cadets," said Senior Master Sgt. Alexander Vazquez, 482nd FW senior recruiter. "It was the first time the Miami Heat organization has hosted an Air Force event and they were very gracious."

The 482nd Fighter Wing Recruiting Office organized this particular event for several different reasons.

"We need to reach out to young people for new enlistees and balance the flow of prior service servicemembers into the Air Force Reserve, which consist of the bulk of the new members to enter the Reserve," Sergeant Vazquez said. "Our program is evolving, and we need to start targeting a wide range of markets."

Another goal is that the recruiters strive to differentiate the Air Force Reserve from other active duty, Guard and Reserve components and become an option for those interested in the military. 

"The Air Force as a whole has a lot of appeal, and one of the appeals is that South Floridians have an opportunity to be a part of the Air Force right here in their backyard," Sergeant Vazquez said.