With the 2020 Reunion being cancelled due to the Covid pandemic, it was good to be able to resume meeting together for those who were able to attend. The 2021 Reunion was held in Tampa, Florida and attendees received gracious hospitality at the Doubletree by Hilton, Tampa Airport. Day 1 was a time for seeing old friends and a chance to "Meet and Greet."
*Click on photos to enlarge them
The Florida Aquarium
MacDill AFB
The MacDill AFB was built in 1939 and has been active from then to the present. The "host wing" is the 6th Air Refueling Wing. During the 1950s and 1960s, it was a Strategic Air Command (SAC) installation for B-47 Stratojet bombers. MacDill AFB is home to the headquarters for two of the U.S. military's unified combatant commands: Headquarters, United States Central Command, and Headquarters, United States Special Operations Command.
Thanks to MSgt Aaron Medina, the Los Toros attendees were treated to exceptional demonstrations of the various facets of MacDill AFB. It was mentioned more than once that AF Air Police was the origin of our current day AF Security Forces, and our group was treated like a group of VIPs. It was not possible to get photos of everything that was experienced, but the visit was one that will not soon be forgotten. Thank you, Tony Santos!
Marine Patrol
A demonstration of Military Working Dog skills
Informative presentations at Helton Hall
The Headquarters Building for the 6th Security Forces Squadron was named in honor of 1st Lt. Joseph Helton who was killed by an IED in Iraq. He was the first Security Forces officer killed in military ops since the Vietnam War. The statue, dubbed "In Defense of Freedom" is in honor of Helton and 13 other Security Forces members killed since 9/11.
Raffle items
*A very special Thank You to Esther Heath and Betsy Henderlong for providing the photographs, and to Dianne Hughes for arranging all the accommodations and itinerary for the 2021 Reunion!