WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8TH – GARY SINISE NFL ALL STARS TOUR TO OKLAHOMA MILITARY BASES:
Departed Nashville today for an NFL All Stars Tour sponsored by the Gary Sinise Foundation. We’ll visit Fort Sill, Tinker AFB, Altus AFB and the Tommy Franks Museum and Leadership Institute. Bobby Carpenter (Dallas Cowboys Alumni), Vernon Carey (Former Miami Dolphin), and Zoe and Taylor (Denver Broncos Cheerleaders) are participating in this tour.
I arrived at the airport before James today. When I checked in on the kiosk, it said I could check one bag free of charge without paying a fee. Then when it tried to print my bag tag, I got an error message saying it couldn’t be printed and I had to see the agent. The line was really long just to “drop bags”. When we finally got up there, the lady said she couldn’t help me because she could only scan a bag tag! By that time, we were cutting it close to get to the gate. I had James check my bag under his name but because he had already checked two bags (One free and one at $40), it cost $150 for the 3rd bag. Ridiculous. I sent copies of everything to my travel agent and she is going to have American refund that amount since I should have been able to check it free of charge.
It was a full flight and neither one of us got an upgrade. Plus we both had terrible “seat mates” in the middle seat beside our aisle seats. My guy asked me to change seats with him and take the middle seat and give him the aisle seat. As if!! Then he told me he would pay for my drinks if I would give him my aisle seat. I told him I don’t drink and there ‘s no way I was giving up my aisle seat. He proceeded to sprawl all over my seat the entire flight including putting his feet under the space in front of my seat. I was so happy to land!!!
We stopped at a Mexican restaurant to grab lunch before the flight to Lawton. Vernon had already landed and joined. Bobby landed shortly thereafter and went to the American Lounge. The girls landed close to flight time so we just met them at the gate. I have to say – these are the NICEST people. This is only the second time I’ve taken sports figures on a tour for the bases. The first time was with Jim McMahon and Kevin Butler to Iraq!
The short fight to Lawton was on a little regional jet. Both flights today were pretty turbulent although there wasn’t any weather nearby. On the 2 hour flight from Nashville to DFW, the pilots wouldn’t let the flight attendants get up to serve beverages. Yet, near the end of the flight, they were allowed to walk up and down the aisle TWICE trying to get passengers to sign up for an American Airlines credit card.
Lawton is a tiny airport and van rentals are non-existent. I found a privately owned company and was able to rent a nice 9 passenger van. Darrell – the owner – picked us up and he is so nice! We left the rental agency and went to dinner with Ethan – our POC at Fort Sill. Both Darrell and Ethan are really nice as well. The food at the Bricktop Brewery was great!
We arrived at the hotel around 7:30 and had no issues checking in. Ethan had offered to take the group on a “graveyard tour” to see headstones dating back to the early 1800’s. He was telling us at dinner that it is supposedly haunted and that coyotes and bobcats are walking around at night. Thankfully, I needed to work and so did James but the NFL folks all went. Will have to get a report from them tomorrow.
Ethan has some really special visits lined up for everyone tomorrow and he said the folks on the base are excited. Tomorrow is “Family Day” on the base so we should have good crowds everywhere.
Special thanks to Gary Sinise for loving our men and women serving so much that he continues to let us honor them and represent him with these entertainment visits!
Almost 3 am, so I am going to bed!
Jude
THURSDAY, FEBURARY 8TH – GSF NFL TOUR AT FT. SILL, OK:
What an incredible day! And after only 4 hours of sleep. We started the day with a visit to the base exchange for a Meet and Greet session. There were a lot of “hiccups” as far as organization but we forged ahead and were able to sign autographs and take photos of everyone for an hour. Bobby, Vernon, Taylor and Zoe are fantastic. They truly love and support the men and women serving and it’s obvious how much they are enjoying this visit.
Next stop was the Live Fire Range. This was incredible treat for the 4 of them. We had to “suit up” in flak vests and helmets (Oh My…the memories of the Iraq and Afghanistan trips were overwhelming!). Of course, they gave us ear protection but I am now sure that what little bit of hearing I had is now totally gone. They let everyone take turns firing the “cannons” and the girls enjoyed it as much as the guys. The soldiers manning the guns obviously saw this visit as a special treat during the daily activities.
From there we went to the Vessey Hall and Confidence Course. This is where everyone “in processes” and trust me there were hundreds of men and women there. They wear color coded vests which indicate how long they have been there. Red means they just arrived, White means they arrived a day ago and Blue means they arrived 2 or more days ago. The White means that English is not their first language and finally Yellow is worn by the ones with a medical condition and they aren’t going to be able to stay. I may have messed up the colors, but I think that is pretty close. Everyone also got to try on a pair of Combat boots. Those have definitely gotten much better since the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan!!!
After that we had a much needed one hour break – which felt like one minute based on how much work I had to do and didn’t get done.
The next stop was the DFAC and there were at least 400 Marines eating dinner. I finally was able to take control of the Photo line and feel sure we took photos with all but a few people in the 1 hour we had there. I had everyone line up (Marines are solo polite!) then I took their phone and handed it to James. I was always holding the phone for the next two people in line while James took photo after photo. Even though it moved quickly, everyone in line felt like they got special attention.
Last stop was the Patriot Club where the Gridiron Challenge was taking place. This was our opportunity to play the Foundation Promotional Video and a special message to Ft. Sill from Gary. Both are very impactful.
There were lots of families with small children at this M&G session. They took photos and signed autographs (mainly on footballs) for an hour. Colonel Michael Hayes (retired) drove down to see me because he’s not going to be at the Museum on Saturday. It was so great to catch up with him after so many years! He stayed with us through the photo session and then had dinner with us.
James, Vernon and I left the club at around 9:00 and Ethan was going to stay and bring Bobby, Zoe and Taylor back to lodging. We have a 9:00 am lobby call to drive to Tinker Air Force Base.
Started out an incredible day and ended the very same way.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9TH, 2024 – VISIT TO TINKER AFB, OK:
We departed the Holiday Inn on Ft. Sill at 9 am for the one hour plus drive to Tinker AFB. I called the hotel to see if we might be able to check in at 10:30 am but the hotel was full last night, so we stopped by and dropped off our bags and then met our POC – Kimberly – at the base entrance.
Our first stop was lunch at the DFAC with the military personnel. They had selected 34 airmen to eat with us in a special section of the DFAC. The food was outstanding…pretty surprising for a military base. We put one person from our group at every table. They told me tonight how much they loved being able to sit and just talk to them about their lives and answer questions about theirs. I sat with Kimberly and a super nice Colonel. After everyone ate, we took photos with all the attendees.
From there we went to the Base Exchange. It was a much better, more organized Meet and Greet this time. One little snafu – they Exchange was donating a huge bin of footballs but they put them behind the area where my group was taking photos with everyone. No one saw them. Finally someone asked if they could buy one of the footballs and that’s when I found out they were free and were supposed to be given to everyone in line. I asked them to roll the bin around to the front and they were gone in just a few minutes. The line was unusually long for a M&G in an Exchange and everyone was more talkative than normal. Plus having 4 people sign the footballs added a lot of time. I eventually had to make the call to cut the line so we could make it to our other visits.
From the exchange, we went to the E-3 AWACS. If you aren’t familiar with that aircraft, it means “Airborne Early Warning and Control”. It’s the one with the huge satellite disk on the top. I first toured one in Itay with The Forester Sisters back in the early 90’s and have seen them many times since then. But it’s always fascinating to talk to the guys and girls who fly and maintain them. We were allowed to take photos outside the plane but had to leave our cell phones, electronic watches, and anything else electronic outside the aircraft. I stayed with the group for a little while and then went back into the hanger to talk to some of the airmen. There was a really pretty really young girl who started asking me questions about what I do and how I chose that career. She had been working maintenance on the aircraft but had just moved to Protocol. She was much happier working in Protocol. I gave her some career advice – probably bad – and chatted with her for several minutes.
We left for our one hour break but didn’t have time to go back to the hotel. Kimberly had set up a room in the Youth Center where we could relax. We started the “Clinic” at 4 pm and there were supposed to be 16 “youth” there. Only there was more like 100 kids of all ages. The girls split the ones who were interested in cheerleading into two groups and each taught them one “dance/cheer”. The guys took those who were interested in football and split them into to groups. They had set up “cones” and threw the football to the kids and had them run between them. Some of the kids were only 2 and 3 years old and it was the cutest, funniest thing ever!
At the end of the clinic, the young girls demonstrated the two cheers they had been taught and did a great job. Then they took photos with everyone and signed tons of autographs.
We were finished for the day and left to go back to the Springhill Suites for the night. Of course, this hotel is fantastic. Always is when you’re only staying somewhere for one night.
Everyone except Vernon met in the lobby at 6:45 pm to walk about a block to a BBQ restaurant. Vernon had been “dreaming” of Waffle House all day. I said I think it might be the first time I’ve met someone who actually craves Waffle House. That’s always a last resort for me. LOL. The BBQ was wonderful and we had so much fun just talking about our lives and getting to know each other. Bobby is so entertaining!
Walked back to the hotel, showered, and now going to be working until around 2 or 3 am again. Totally worth it! We have reached so many men and women serving our country on this trip and actually had time to “talk” to them. Gary would be so proud of this group. Without him, this tour would not have been possible and we make sure the bases know how much he loves everyone serving. There are so many ways he can show his support to our military and first responders and it’s awesome that he decided to start this program to get entertainment out to the bases. Nothing means more to those serving than a “personal” visit. And, they don’t have to be deployed overseas to “need” to be shown that little bit of love and appreciation. They know we don’t have to visit them. We come because we want to show our appreciation to them and it means as much to us to be able to visit personally as it does to them.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 10TH, – VISIT TO GENERAL TOMMY FRANKS LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE AND MUSEUM:
Today was an “easy” day compared to the past 3 days. We departed the hotel at 10:00 am and after a quick stop at Starbucks, James drove us the 2 hours to Hobart, OK. I tried the new “olive oil coffee” drink but got it with decaffeinated coffee. It was delicious! We stopped at General Franks Museum in Hobart for a quick tour.
The staff was waiting for us and had ordered lunch from a local burger restaurant. While we ate, they gave us a brief history of the museum. One of the highlights of the day was meeting a gentleman who had served in the Secret Service for 20 years of his life.
The minute we entered the museum, the “smell” immediately transported me back to my 39 tours throughout Iraq. There is a smell in the country that permeates clothing and everything we brought back from there. No matter how many times I washed the clothes after a visit, the smell remained.
The collection of items the General has from his career is overwhelming. From the Vietnam war through the Iraq War, he has led a life of service to our country and nearly gave his life many times protecting our freedom. I could have spent all day looking at the items from Iraq, Afghanistan and the Twin Towers. The person who gave us the guided tour was excellent.
After about an hour tour, the NFL group met with several students for another 20 minutes. Then after taking photos with everyone, we visited the gift shop to make a few purchases.
When we had arrived at the museum, it was raining lightly and the staff said they were thankful to us for bringing them the rain since it rarely rains here. But, upon leaving, it was still raining and the temperature had dropped significantly. A Winter Weather Advisory is in place through midnight Sunday night. I just hope it’s wrong because we are flying out of the tiny Lawton airport and I doubt that they are equipped with equipment to clear snow and ice!
We made a quick stop at a Wal-Mart and then Our POC – Cindy – met us at a gas station just outside the base gates. We followed her in and didn’t have any problem accessing the base. Cindy already had our room keys for us so we drove straight to lodging. Lodging is very typical military lodging with large rooms. Basically, a sitting area and full kitchen, separate room of the bathroom and then a bathroom.
Cindy and I drove over to the DFAC where we’ll have lunch with the men and women tomorrow and then by the club where the Super Bowl Party will be held. Their main concern is the weather because people won’t come out if it is snowing and the forecast says their might be up to 4 inches of accumulation. I sure hope the forecast is wrong!!!
I went back to my room and unpacked somewhat. Since we are only here 2 days, don’t want to take out anything I won’t be using.
Since this is not a hotel but just a building with lots of rooms in it, we all met at the van to go to dinner. We had been told that the best restaurant was a steakhouse in Blair – a town about a 15 minute drive from Altus. Altus is “tiny”. The people we met today just kept saying they couldn’t believe their little base had been selected for the visit. They are so worried about the weather and having a good turnout. I assured them that it doesn’t matter how many people are able to attend. We just want to say thank you and spend some time talking with their service members.
Dinner was excellent and I ate way too much fattening food. Cindy’s co-workers met us for dinner as well and Mike is going to take over for Cindy tomorrow because she is flying to Florida for her Mom’s 90th birthday. It was another great meal with truly wonderful people. When we left the restaurant for the drive back to base, it was FREEZING. James only brought a lightweight fleece with him so we stopped by Wal-Mart to see if he could find a heavy jacket. Believe it or not in this State where hunting is so predominant, there were no jackets. In fact, ladies swimsuits were already out!
Busy day ahead tomorrow and I want to get in bed before 3 am tonight so signing off now.
Jude
SUPER BOWL SUNDAY – FEBRUARY 11TH – ALTUS AFB:
Can’t believe this is the last stop on the tour! The time has just flown by.
Lobby call was 11:30 am and it was freezing cold and raining. We went to the DFAC but only a few people were there because of the weather. They were serving Sunday Brunch so we had a great “breakfast”. They had custom made omelets which is my favorite.
People started coming in as we were eating so we were able to spend some time with them, take photos and sign autographs. A lot of their DFAC personnel are Special Needs individuals and they really enjoyed our visit.
From there we went to the Fire Department and the rain had turned to A LOT OF SNOW! Temperature is still just above freezing so the snow isn’t sticking to the roads – yet. The visit to the Fire Department was awesome. They told us about their work and we learned some fascinating new facts. Everyone there seemed to love their jobs, too. Got some great photos. They were cooking steak tonight and invited us back to eat dinner with them. Sadly, we have to do a Meet & Greet just prior to the Super Bowl so we have to politely decline their invitation.
After the Fire Department visit, we went to the Command Post for a short visit and then to the Special Ops and Police. We had to shift some visits around because of the snow. We added a stop at the Control Tower and that was interesting for my group. Only no one was working except for the one female they brought it to give us the tour. Still it was pretty cool hearing her talk about their work and seeing all the air craft lined up below us.
After the control tower, we went to take photos with the guys/girls manning the access gate. Because it was really snowing (mixed with rain) hard by that time, we all had to squeeze into the little room where the guards stand. But, they were so appreciative that we took time to stop by.
Last stop was the Kennels – which I expected to be cancelled because of the weather. But we were able to visit inside the kennels and see all the dogs. I think I mentioned that this is a very small Air Force Base and they only had 6 dogs. We did go outside and a female handler and a airman gave us the “demonstration” of the dog attacking. As always, it was amazing to watch. I felt so bad for them having to stand out in the rain/snow mixture and the freezing cold but evidently, they wanted to do this for us.
The group had a one hour break while James and I went to Lodging to collect our bill and then the club to try and figure out the video system. Lodging was unable to give me a copy of our paid invoices so I’m going to have to rely on their word that they will email me a copy! James was unable to get the video working in the “Club” but got it to play in the Ballroom. We’re just going to have to move anyone in the club into the Ballroom to see the videos.
We only had about 10 minutes back at lodging after we finalized the video hookup. I had time to unplug my computer and brush my teeth before going back to the club.
We decided to “hold” the start time of the M&G until 5:15 pm to give people time to arrive. The bar area quickly filled up and the ballroom tables were filling in nicely by the time we played the GSF and Gary’s videos. We kicked off our evening with the two videos from Gary and the Foundation and then the Cheerleads gave a short demonstration. They signed autographs until the game kicked off but everyone also stayed and watched the game. The snow definitely kept a lot of people from attending the game at the Club but what we lacked in numbers, the attendees made up for in enthusiasm. The cheerleaders and players spent the entire time that the game was being played signing autographs, taking photos and just “talking” to people. The FSS Commander and her husband and two children attended. Cindy said they have been so great about attending and supporting everything that happens on the base. I got to talk to her for quite a while and we realized that we probably met when I took Darryl Worley to Qatar many years ago because she has my “guitar” coin! Small world sometimes. I wish there was a way to get more entertainment to Altus. It’s such a small base and they always get overlooked. But everyone serving here are so nice!
James and I went to Yu Yu’s and picked up Chinese food for everyone and ate during the game. Of course the game went into overtime but the Chiefs won in the end. We packed up and headed back to lodging quickly because we have a 7:15 am lobby call to drive the one hour to the airport.
What a wonderful tour this has been.
Jude
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12TH – FLYING HOME:
I know I’m a little late posting the final report but have a very good excuse!
I set my alarm for 5:15 am and had just gotten out of the shower when my phone started blowing up with Text Messages from TripIt and the Airline. Evidently, our flight departing at 10:27 am was delayed until 2:40 pm! With 6 people flying to 4 different cities, I had a busy couple of hours ahead of me.
When Delta has a flight delay, they immediately re-book everyone on the next available flight. That didn’t happen with this airline so I had to call and wake up my travel agent. Just as she was beginning to re-route everyone, messages started coming in from the Airline giving us the new flight options. While we would all arrive much later than previously scheduled, at least we would all make it home tonight.
I knew the group would probably need to eat something before we departed lodging at 10:30 am so James took everyone who wanted to go to the DFAC for breakfast at 8:30 am. Then we had about an hour in our rooms before departing to the airport at 10:30 am. It was about an hour drive and we needed to eat lunch before turning in the van. We went to Panera for a quick lunch and then took the van back to the rental company. Darrell – the owner of the company – rode with us back to the airport and then took the van back to his company.
We all got checked in relatively easy since there’s only one airline and one gate! Security wasn’t open so we had to wait in the check-in area until someone came to open the lane. After clearing security, we went directly to their one departure/arrival gate. When we checked in, I asked the ticket counter agent if they flight was delayed because of the snow and ice. She confirmed that the airport doesn’t have any way to clear ice or snow and no “de-icing machines” for the aircraft. So if it snows or ices and it “sticks”, passengers are delayed until everything melts.
We were able to depart a little earlier than 2:40 pm which was great because several of us have very short connections at DFW so every extra minute helped. We said our “goodbyes” after landing at DFW and everyone rushed to their departure gates. James and I were flying to Nashville and I planned to get a lot of work done on the 1 hr. and 45 minute flight. I got up to go to the restroom right before we took off but was told the toilet was not working. That meant hiking half the length of the plane to use the toilet in the middle of the plane (which I have never seen except on International flights!) and by the time I got there, there was a line waiting to use the facility. The flight attendant did very quietly “announce” just to the first class customers that the toilet was not working, almost as if it were a secret. I guess they “should” have delayed the flight until it could be repaired but I’m sure glad they didn’t.
We landed Nashville on time – tired but also pumped up from a really successful visit with the three bases and museum. When I take a comedian or a musical entertainer, we can do a couple of unit visits early in the day but then have to spend the afternoon setting up for the show and doing sound checks. This “Meet & Greet” tour gave us the opportunity to spend 8 hours total visiting the various Units, DFAC and Exchange. We were able to interact “one-on-one” with everyone we met plus take a photo with them and sign autographs. We don’t have to wait and hope that the military personnel will come see the show in the evenings. Usually attendance is based on how many people like a particular genre of music or a specific comedian. Attendance will range from 50 people on the really small, remote bases to several hundred on the larger bases. But with this tour, we reached hundreds of men and women each day with our personal visits. Something to consider as I set up additional tours for the GSF for the remainder of 2024!
I now have a few weeks at home before beginning to travel pretty much “non-stop” for the remainder of the year! But, as always, feeling incredibly blessed to be able to say “thank you” personally to the men and women serving!
Jude