945th AMXS

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Senior Master Sgt. Thews, along with airmen from the from the 860th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, 945th AMXS and 60th Logistics Readiness Squadron, pose in front of an Unmanned Aerospace Vehicle called the MQ-9 Reaper aircraft. Left to right starting with the back row: Senior Airmen Benjamin Propst, 860 AMXS, Michael Wendlinger, 945 AMXS, Saverio DeMitri, 860 AMXS, Senior Master Sgt. Darren Thews, 945 AMXS, Tech. Sgt. Timothy Stotenburg, 945 AMXS, and Senior Airman Jazmin Gonzalez, 60 LRS. Front row left to right: Senior Airman Miles Stidham, 860 AMXS, Master Sgt. Kizer Davidson, 945 AMXS, Senior Airman Ryan Esparza, 860 AMXS, and Staff Sgt. Carlos Lewis, 60 LRS. (Air Force photo courtesy of Senior Master Sgt. Darren A. Thews)

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349th Air Mobility Wing Reserve member to receive Air Force Reserve Citizen of the Year award

Published Aug. 31, 2010
By Senior Airman Amelia Leonard
349th Public Affairs

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Senior Master Sgt. Darren A. Thews of the 945th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron here is scheduled to receive the Air Force Reserve Citizen of the Year award at the Air and Space Conference and Technology Exposition in National Harbor, Md. on September 13.

The award recognizes enlisted members who deployed in support of current operations during 2009 and their employers who illustrated strong support for the activation and deployment.
In order to have been considered for the award, the recipient must have submitted a nomination package which included a brief biography listing their accomplishments and contributions to the Air Expeditionary Forces or contingency. The nomination package must have also included a one-page description illustrating how the nominees' civilian employer strongly supported the activation or deployment.

Sergeant Thews was deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan from January to May 2009 maintaining C-17 aircraft, and is now on year-long active duty orders here at Travis.

Sergeant Thews' supervisor, Chief Master Sgt. Gregory M. McGee, submitted the nomination package citing Thews' ability to seamlessly flow into the maintenance shop on a day to day basis.

"I nominated Sgt. Thews because he is a representative of about 1,000 reservists," said Chief McGee. "He finds a way to make the sacrifices to come out here and work for us. He flows into an active role where he's actually part of the leadership on the flight line."

He has been well trained and versed on the aircraft and runs the day to day operations on the flight line, said Chief McGee. In the nomination package, Chief McGee also recognized Sgt. Thews' relationship with his employer, United Airlines.

"He has a relationship with his employer that promotes his military duty and allows him to come out and work," said Chief McGee.

Sgt. Thews has been nominated for awards in the past but has never won, and he was shocked when he found out, he said.

"I felt like I was walking on air," Sergeant Thews said.

He credits his success to the support of his family and fellow wingmen both on the ground in Afghanistan, but also at Travis.

"I could not have been successful without them."

945th AMXS