DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- Wow ... we are off to a great start to the 101 Critical Days of Summer! Statistics show the majority of all Air Force fatalities, injuries and mishaps occur in the summertime months between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Please continue taking care of each other and use the wingman concept. Team Dover continues to play a critical role in the Global War on Terror ... we need each of you to safely perform this mission. 

Last week, our 436th Mission Support Squadron hosted a Community College of the Air Force graduation. I'm proud to announce 127 Airmen received their CCAF degrees ... I'd also like to congratulate our Airmen on this significant accomplishment. Equally impressive to the amount of personnel receiving their degrees is the relatively young age of our Airmen graduating. 

Although I can't list all 127 graduates, it's young professionals like Airman 1st Class Joshua Fields, 436th Maintenance Squadron; Airman 1st Class Francisco Honorio, 436th Aerial Port Squadron; Airman 1st Class Thad Nagey, 436th APS; Airman 1st Class Ezequiel Ramos, 436th Civil Engineer Squadron; and Airman Wilson Tejada, 436th APS, who received their degrees. Unbelievable! These five Airmen are just a few that received their CCAF degree during their first enlistment ... it took this old chief over 16 years to accomplish the same feat. Awesome job folks, you're on your way! 

As the Air Force continues to modernize and transform ... we will need highly educated enlisted leaders to perform the mission. Over the past year the Air Force released a program designed to assist with enlisted force development. The Associate-to-Baccalaureate Cooperative Program offers a way for our Airmen to earn a bachelor's degree while supporting the increased Air Force operations tempo and expeditionary deployments. This is a great initiative and I challenge our Airmen to take advantage of the program. Airmen can enroll by using the Air Force Virtual Education Center on the Air Force Portal. Currently 486 Dover Airmen are enrolled and on their way to achieving a bachelor's degree ... great job! 

Improving your minds should not come at the expense of improving your bodies, which is why I am so excited to see more Airmen using the Fitness Center. That hard work pays off, as every one of our Team Dover members works to improve our "Fit to Fight" metric. That hard work and dedication in the gym allows our Airmen to perform their jobs easily and safely, and also proves why we need the new $20 million fitness center that is scheduled to begin construction in 2009! 

The old maxim, "All work and no play makes insert name, a dull insert gender," is still true, which is why I wanted to remind you of the NASCAR social tonight at The Landings Club, which starts at 5:30 p.m. Come out and enjoy some of the free pizza and meet some of the drivers before they race on Sunday! Bring your family and take a nice relaxing break. You've earned it! 

A focus on safety, improving your minds, while maintaining a commitment to fitness ... just three more reasons Team Dover is "America's Preeminent Expeditionary Airlift Team!"