EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska -- Rank and Name: Airman 1st Class Chasten Gibbs
Duty Title: Bioenvironmental engineering apprentice, 354th Medical Group
Hometown: Columbia, Missouri
Why is serving in the Air Force important to you? Serving for the world’s greatest Air Force is important to me personally because it gives me a higher sense of purpose. To have the opportunity to do whatever you can to help protect this beautiful nation we inhabit and simultaneously help better and further yourself as a person is not offered anywhere else, which is an amazing thing.
What moment or accomplishment as a member of the Iceman Team are you most proud of and why? I’m most proud of being elected to the position of ‘A.C.E. representative’ for the medical group’s newly established ‘First 5’. My role for the First 5 means that I have the opportunity to liaison between the two committees to share information such as event and volunteer opportunities, changes that may affect the base or our career, and voice concerns on behalf of my fellow Airmen. I’m excited to be part of a group dedicated to improving the Eielson experience for our Iceman Medics.
What is your favorite part of your job? As a member of the bioenvironmental engineering career field, I am responsible for identifying potential hazards, analyzing said hazards, and then communicating to workers and their leadership the best ways to control that hazard. Just knowing that what I do helps protect our fellow Airmen makes my job a blessing.
Who inspires you and why? My parents and my fellow bioenvironmental engineers inspire me most in everything I do. They are always doing everything they can to produce a great product and are always looking for ways to better themselves. I just want to make them proud by doing the same.
What's your favorite part about being in Alaska? The kind of “homey” community we have here would have to be my favorite part of Alaska. Everyone here is super friendly, which I’ve never experienced in the lower 48.