New commander for 436th Logistics Group

This is one of those stories I was forced to take a byline on and didn't want to. That happens sometimes. There is a lot of stuff I have written that is not here on my Web page. Those are things like headlines, photo captions and cutlines, community notes, which amount to bulletin board notes, and short little stories like this one. Sometimes you write a story and you know you don't want a byline. This is one of those cases. There is essentially a formula for writing a change of command story. You don't even have to think about it. The original author of this story was Tomi McCain. She has separated from the Air Force now. It was about some other change of command and I don't remember for who. So I took her story, plugged in new names and new units and new information. Most of the information I got from calling his old unit and requesting a biography. I copied it all from there. I didn't have to think about it at all. But it gave me a headache doing it because first I was uninterested in writing about a change of command, because it is so boring and trivial and second because I had to follow somebody else's formula. It's like cleaning somebody else's closet out and you don't know what their system is or why they did it a certain way and before you can get started you have to figure out what they were thinking. This guy was like a thirty year colonel. I thought that was pretty cool, except that he was not a very personable guy I don't think. He started the Air Force way back in Vietnam as an airman, and here he is today as a colonel in command of his own squadron. I find that admirable. He also wore the same boots as me, Vietnam issue green jungle boots. Not many people have those boots and I caught trouble from some people about it, but I could point to him and my PAO and say 'They wear them!' I would have left my name off this story. But since I didn't, here it is.

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. - Col. Donald H. Stokes, Jr. assumed command of the 436th Logistics Group from Col. Timothy T. Turner, in a ceremony held Monday at Building 709.

Turner relinquished command to Stokes to accept an assignment as Chief of the Traffic Management Division, HQ USAF/ILTT at the Pentagon.

Stokes, a native of Hot Springs, Ark., earned a bachelor's degree in Aviation Management from Auburn University, Auburn, Ala., and a Master of Arts degree in Public Administration from Webster College, St. Louis, Mo.

His career includes assignments command of two squadrons at Altos Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and Deputy Logistics Group Commander, 51st Fighter Wing, Osan Air Base, Korea. Most recently, Stokes was assigned NAF Chief, Logistics Division, 19th Air Force, Randolph Air Force Base, 'Texas.

Stokes awards and decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal with six oak leaf clusters, an Air Force Commendation Medal, and Air Force Achievement Medal, and a Vietnam Service Medal with three service stars.

As commander of the 436th Logistics Group, Stokes will be responsible for providing complete on/off equipment maintenance, supply, fuels, transportation and contracting support for 36 C-S aircraft and 7,500 personnel assigned to the 436th Airlift Wing, the 512th Airlift Wing, and 17 tenant units, and will manage off station logistics support for five Air Mobility Command European forward operating locations. CTLOPEZ (Publication date, April 23, 1999)