352nd SOSS Airman brings ‘Spirit of Hope,’ ‘Excellence in Service’ to Team Mildenhall

Published June 30, 2015
By Karen Abeyasekere
352nd Special Operations Wing Public Affairs

RAF MILDENHALL, England -- Helping others is a way of life for Tech. Sgt. Rebeca Martin, 352nd Special Operations Support Squadron Aircraft Flight Equipment NCO in charge. Despite being a full time service member, mom of three children and student studying for a masters’ degree, the San Francisco native still manages to help others. By doing whatever it takes – whether that involves giving her time or money – Martin makes life better for those less fortunate.

Service before self

It’s this selfless attitude which earned her the 2014 “Spirit of Hope Award, Military Program” for Air Forces Special Operations Command and the Air Force active duty winner of the League of
United Latin American Citizens' Excellence in Service Award.

The Spirit of Hope award, named in honor of Bob Hope, is presented for outstanding service to the United States of America and awarded to men, women and organizations of the armed forces, entertainers, and other distinguished Americans and organizations whose patriotism and service reflect Bob Hope’s service.

The LULAC Excellence in Service Award honors military members and defense civilian employees who have supported the Department of Defense mission, overseas contingency operations, or whose attributes best epitomized the qualities and core values of their respective military or DoD component. The nominees promote the tenets of civil/human rights, equal opportunity, human relations, and/or public service.

Earning both awards in the same year highlights her consistent pursuit of helping others, selfless leadership, and passion for humanitarianism.

Martin has been brought up to help others, and has done so from an early age.

“My mother was Mexican and we went to Mexico every summer, driving through a lot of these towns which were like cardboard boxes,” she recalled. “My mom use to take all of our hand-me-down stuff, along with things that she’d pick up from thrift shops, and we’d drive through these small towns and she’d give all of our stuff to them.

“I never really understood why when I was young. As I started getting older I realized that we were pretty fortunate,” she recalled.

This foundation Martin’s mother laid created the backbone of her spirit of giving.

Making memories

The AFE NCO in charge described how 2014 had brought her many wonderful experiences and opportunities to help others. One event specifically evokes a particularly fond set of memories.

“The Joan Mann Special Sports Day was very emotional for me. From February to September 2014, I was contacting different agencies for people with special needs; seeing the children and adults, and just how the community came together was emotional for me,” Martin explained. “I think a lot of people tend to forget that these children and adults will always remember little details. I was talking to a lot of their providers and they told me every single year these children come to this event and they’ll remember the people that were there.”

Martin’s direct involvement with the Special Olympics event enabled more than 400 British special-needs athletes and providers to attend. Furthermore, throughout 2014 she gave more than 1,100 hours of her time, money and energy working with 18 community and base-wide organizations and committees, helping Service members and their families, and continuing to strengthen the bond with the local community.

Helping young and old

She has also volunteered her time to help unaccompanied Airmen in the dormitories, newly assigned service members, and families with deployed spouses. Additionally, Martin was president of the RAF Mildenhall Child Development Center’s Parent Advisory Committee.

“Working with the PAC has been very meaningful to me; it’s impacted a lot of children and parents,” Martin remarked. “But I feel like it’s been well worth it; I’ve got to know a lot of the children and feel like it has strengthened my passion.”

Amongst her list of seemingly never-ending volunteer accomplishments, another which is special to her is her work with the Holocaust Remembrance Month committee. She organized a question-and-answer panel at a survivor’s luncheon, which enabled Team Mildenhall members to hear first-hand accounts of Holocaust survivor Harold Burgh, as he shared memories and experiences of the Holocaust and his near-death experiences in a concentration camp.

Martin said Burgh has since passed away.

“It was really sad because that kind of history is going away,” she said. “He was a lovely gentleman.”

Reason to help

Trying to cram everything in between work, family and studying is difficult, but Martin makes it happen and ensures it’s a family affair whenever possible.

“I love the chaos,” she said. “I try and involve my children as well; my son has helped out a couple of times with the Holocaust Remembrance committee events, and my husband has helped out quite a bit as well. They love supporting everything and helping out.”

Martin expressed how supportive her work colleagues and leadership have been, adding they all have the same mindset of trying to give time or talent to other organizations.

“We do what we do for the Air Force in the best way we can, but we can always help others and be able to contribute even more,” she said.

The NCO’s dedication and qualities stood out to her leadership, who are not surprised at her winning the Spirit of Hope Award and LULAC Excellence in Service Award

“It’s humbling to see how much Tech. Sgt. Martin has done for the community; it’s amazing how much giving she’s done and effort she’s put in to helping people,” said Lt. Col. Scott Hartman, 352nd SOSS commander from Grayling, Michigan. “She’s really internalized it for her and the rest of her family – she encourages other members of the squadron to participate – not in a guilt-trip kind of a way, but goes out of her way to define what people are interested in then find an opportunity for them that meets their interests. That’s pretty outstanding when you think about the effort and thought that she puts into helping people and sharing how much she enjoys that with the people she’s working with.

“The feedback I’ve got is that they appreciate that as well, and they’re just amazed at how much she gives back to anyone that’s really in need,” the 352nd SOSS commander said. “It’s amazing how much Tech. Sgt. Martin has energized them to think about what they can do to help as well.”

Excellence in all we do

Helping others is just a way of life to Martin, and one she isn’t planning to stop any time soon.

“What jumps out at me is her selflessness and her dedication to helping people with the sheer number of things she tries to do, and how much time and effort she puts in,” Hartman remarked. “She epitomizes honor, courage and loyalty – you can see that in how she holds herself and she’s a fantastic NCO and is definitely a role model for everyone she works with.”

“I try to live a life that will be an inspiration for my children, my friends and colleagues,” Martin said. “I think over the years, ‘volunteering’ or ‘community service’ has lost its true meaning. I don’t volunteer for the praise; I do it because I enjoy seeing the smiles, the joy and the appreciation of those I helped.”

It’s this selfless, positive attitude that makes for a win-win situation all round.

“Knowing that what we did somehow made someone else feel better, or somehow improved their situation, that’s why I’ll continue to help with what I can – time, talent or treasure,” added Martin.

Martin will be presented the LULAC Excellence in Service Award at the LULAC National Convention and Exposition in Salt Lake City, Utah, July 9, 2015.