Knockin' the ball out of the park every day (part 2) Published Dec. 7, 2007 By Col. Mark Bontrager 45th Mission Support Group commander PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- About a month ago, I wrote about the amazing contributions of just half of the Mission Support Group squadrons -- Civil Engineering, Logistics Readiness, and Security Forces. This time I follow up with the remaining three. Without the Mission Support Squadron we wouldn't be able to come to work or even have access to our computers. Pay attention now, these are coming fast: from July to September, the Mission Support Squadron made more than 11,000 military and civilian ID cards, delivered permanent change of station orders for 112 folks, educated 57 folks, decorated 23 folks, separated 7 folks, produced 42 Airman Leadership School graduates and had over 75 deployed family members over for dinner at the Airman Family Readiness Center. All this and more earned them the No. 1 Civilian Personnel Office, the No. 1 Manpower Office and the No. 1 Education Center in Air Force Space Command for 2007. And there's more. Can you imagine running this wing without contractors? Our outstanding contracting squadron is foundational to every part of this wing's mission. One of the biggest accomplishments recently was the award of the $816 million Eastern Range Technical Services contract. This contract ensures the Wing Commander's top priority for public safety and operation of the Eastern Range. In just the last quarter, the contracting professionals completed 811 contract actions obligating over $75.5 million. When you look over the whole fiscal year, they completed 1956 contract actions for a whopping $359.7 million! You would be amazed at the dizzying array of laws and contract guidance that must be followed in federal contracting. This great team knows it all well and operates at such a professional level. Finally, none of us can forget the Services Division - number two in the Air Force for customer service! Almost 400 civilians devote their energies daily to serving the needs of the Patrick community through 27 activities, from bowling to Outdoor Recreation, from the dining facility to the fitness center, from golf to The Tides, from child care to the Honor Guard. In just the last quarter the Services team delivered over 850 Home Community Care hours and 385 Extended Duty Care hours. They completed a $1.8 million Golf Greens project and won the highest ever Patrick inspection score for lodging at 89%. The Honor Guard got great praise when the USAF Honor Guard said: "Best base Honor Guard program visited." Services earned four-star ratings for both the Fitness Center and Library. Services is always there, 24/7, meeting the quality of life needs of the Patrick community! Amazing isn't it? And that's just Patrick... next time we'll talk about the Cape. Your MSG team is here to support you -- the men and women of the Patrick AFB community - every day. Next time you see an MSGer, military or civilian, take a minute to say "Thanks." It means a lot!