Base fitness center dedicated to bona fide American hero

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Erik Hofmeyer
  • 482nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
HOMESTEAD AIR RESERVE BASE, Fla. --  U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson was showered with proclamations and adoration as the guest of honor during a ceremony renaming the Homestead Air Reserve Base fitness center as the "Sam Johnson Fitness Center" on Feb 4.

Servicemembers, elected officials and prominent members of the community filled the audience in front of the Sam Johnson Fitness Center for a tribute to the highly decorated Air Force fighter pilot who flew combat missions in both the Korean and Vietnam Wars and spent nearly seven years as a Prisoner of War in Hanoi.

In 1966, he was shot down over North Vietnam while flying a combat mission in an F-4 Phantom, and was locked in solitary confinement for 42 months after his captives labeled him a "die-hard." Upon release and recovery, he assumed command of the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing at Homestead Air Force Base from 1975-1979. And after a 29-year Air Force career, he was elected to represent the people of Texas' Third District in the United States Congress.

The legislation renaming the fitness center was sponsored by Congressmen Jack Kingston (1st Dist., Ga.) and supported Mario Diaz-Balart (25th Dist., Fla.), Lincoln Diaz-Balart (21st Dist., Fla.), and Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (18th Dist., Fla.), and was designated in Section 130 of the Military Construction Appropriation Conference Report in Fiscal Year 2005.

Colonel Falcon offered the opening remarks of the ceremony by welcoming all distinguished visitors and by introducing Congressman Sam Johnson and his heralded military and congressional accomplishments.

Subsequently, elected officials from all over Miami-Dade County took turns giving proclamations and keys to their respective cities to honor the Congressman. In attendance was Commissioner Jose "Pepe" Diaz, Miami-Dade County; Mayor Lynda Bell, City of Homestead; Mayor Otis Wallace, Florida City; Mayor Paul Vrooman, Cutler Bay; Mayor Gene Flinn, Palmetto Bay; Mayor Robert Vernon, Key Biscayne.

After finishing with the proclamations, the congressional members in attendance spoke about their respect for Congressman Sam Johnson.

"Ileana, Lincoln (Diaz-Balart), Jack and I are always reminded of the greatness of our country. It's a privilege to work in Washington D.C. And among those privileges, is to be in the same building as Sam Johnson. He is humble and full of love, and he has given and continues to give so much," said Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart.

"You can hear a pin drop when he takes the House floor because we all know we're in the presence of a true American hero," he added.

Congressman Jack Kingston followed with a moving tribute to the Air Force veteran.

"As an Airman, he has kept the Airman's Creed and lived it," Congressman Kingston said.

The Georgia lawmaker went into detail on the torture Sam Johnson endured for nearly seven years and the clandestine language and tap codes the prisoners developed to communicate without their captors' knowledge.

He (Sam Johnson) was promised great comfort if he wrote a letter to Congress denouncing his country, but he never caved him. And when the time came to write a letter home to his family, he was torn between writing of his love for his family and sending a coded message informing authorities of the other men held captive, Congressman Kingston said.

Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen then thanked Congressman Kingston for spearheading the legislation to honor Congressman Johnson, and then invited Colonel Falcon and all Congressional members to approach the front table for the unveiling of a bronze dedication plaque to be mounted in front of the facility.

Congressman Johnson then spoke of his recovery from the deplorable incarceration, and how his first solo flight after his body mended was from Homestead Air Force Base.

To relate to the fitness center being named after him, he also described how he and his comrades stayed in physical shape in the prison camps by exercises in their cells such as pushups and jogging in their leg irons to keep up their resolve. And the venerable Congressman concluded his speech by reciting the code used to communicate "God bless you."

For years to come, the Sam Johnson Fitness Center will serve as a means for thousands of servicemembers to stay in top physical shape. The facility is the first and only Reserve facility to receive the most prestigious distinction for a fitness center in the Air Force - a five-star rating by the Air Force Services Agency. More than 500 people visit the facility each day to take advantage of the indoor basketball and racquetball courts, fitness classes, and cardio and weight rooms packed with weights and machines.