USAF EC command chief retires after three decades of service

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jaimie Powell
  • USAF Expeditionary Center Public Affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  In 1984, Pete Stone lived a simple, yet happy life with his wife, Heidi, where he refurbished old colonial homes in a small town in New Hampshire.

However, after a couple years of working as a contractor, Stone yearned for something more. He wanted to see the world, get an education, but most of all he couldn't shake the desire to serve his country. After discussing the possibility of enlisting in the military with his father in law, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, it didn't take long before he realized that enlisting in the Air Force was the best answer.

Now, after 30 years and 19 moves that have taken his family to four continents and six countries, the career that began in that small town has come to an end with Chief Master Sgt. Pete Stone's formal retirement ceremony on November 30.

"I'm a firm believer that there's three reasons people join the military; one being to travel, two to serve your country and three is the educational drive," Stone said. "For me, the most important reason is to serve your country and that is exactly why I came in."

His career began as a flightline crew chief at Travis Air Force Base, where Stone was determined to learn everything he could about the C-141 Starlifter, the aircraft he was assigned to.

"I hunted down every individual that I thought had the knowledge and experience that I could tap into and learn from," said Stone.

With the support of his family and dedication to his mission, his determination paid off--at the end of his first, six-year enlistment, he was selected for promotion to technical sergeant.

It was during this enlistment that Stone decided to make the Air Force a career. Even with the 14-hour days on the flightline, some working in harsh weather, his passion for service was unwavering.

"I would watch an aircraft (that I worked on) taxi down the runway and takeoff on a real-world mission," Stone said. "It left a lump in my throat, and I knew then that I wanted to continue to do it."

Throughout Stone's long career, he has witnessed quite a few changes to the Air Force. He has seen 31 named operations, from Earnest Will in 1987 to Operation Inherent Resolve, which is still going on today. He also witnessed the size of the Air Force go from 600,000 strong to now half that size.

"We've changed so much in the last 30 years," Stone said. "I've seen technology just absolutely explode. Technology is a great thing but it can also be our worst enemy. I think a big challenge we face going forward is keeping our Airmen focused on the mission and not so much relying on technology to do the mission."

During his retirement ceremony, Stone pointed out two empty chairs that were reserved for very important men in his life who have passed away. The first, being his father, who Stone credited as developing him as a child and giving him the tools he needed to succeed. The second chair was for his father in law, retired Army Lt. Col. John Wooten who was the man Stone turned to his entire career for guidance and support.

"My father in law was a brilliant man, very intelligent, and he really helped me throughout my career, and developed and challenged me to be better than I ever thought I could be," Stone said. "That is what a good mentor is, always being available when someone's in need, regardless of what you got going on."

Stone's last assignment was at the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center, where he served as the command chief. Here he was the principal adviser to the commander and his senior staff on matters of health, welfare and morale, professional development, and the effective utilization of enlisted personnel assigned to the command.

Maj. Gen. Rick Martin, commander of the USAF EC, described his career as one part becoming the expert and the other, becoming the invaluable senior NCO leader he is today. Martin went on to list the many hobbies Stone had perfected to include Taekwondo, in which he earned black belt alongside his two daughters, becoming a dive master, ski instructor and a soccer coach, to name a few.

"When Pete Stone puts his mind to something, he goes after it and does it very, very well," Martin said.

Something that Stone has done very well is serving his country, but throughout his career he has learned many other life lessons. Number one to him being the importance of getting to know those you work with and developing a rapport with them.

"That is significant to me because then you hear about their family and what they want to do or what direction they want to take, it helps me focus them in that direction," Stone said. "With that, the one piece of advice I would leave to young Airmen is, take care of each other like you would your brother or sister."