WPAFB celebrating AF Aid Society

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WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE — Wright-Patterson Air Force Base will host a celebration 1-3 p.m. Friday, March 10 at the Airman & Family Readiness Center in honor of the Air Force Aid Society’s 75th anniversary of helping Airmen.

The celebration will be held concurrently with Headquarters AFAS and other Air Force Bases world-wide.

The entire Wright-Patt community is invited to attend the event and to enjoy refreshments.

The AFAS is a non-profit organization that was started in 1942 to help relieve financial hardships of Air Force members and their families and to assist them in financing their higher education goals. AFAS is the official charity for the United States Air Force.

“I’m very excited to be a part of celebrating this momentous milestone,” said Gary Sapp, community readiness consultant at the A&FRC and AFAS officer for Wright-Patt. “Prior to my retirement from active duty service, I was a First Sergeant and I referred many Airmen to the Airman & Family Readiness Center for assistance from Air Force Aid Society. Now that I’m on the staff end I get to be part of helping Airmen get the assistance…it’s a privilege.”

In 2016, Airmen from Wright-Patt have benefitted from AFAS assistance totaling $225,584 in interest-free loans, grants and community programs designed to support Air Force members and their families.

Other plans for the celebration will include recognizing five scholarship recipients of the AFAS Spouse Employment Training Program. Recipients are dependent spouses entering the pharmacy technician field.

Wright-Patt was recently selected by HQ AFAS to participate in the 2017 Spouse Employment Training Program. The program provides funding for entry-level job training for active duty Air Force spouses that will [potentially] lead to immediate, viable employment, according to the AFAS.

“AFAS programs have obviously been in existence for quite some time,” said Sapp. “I believe Airmen are more aware of the programs now. The word is getting out when they [Airmen] share with others how AFAS helped them in their time of need.”

Sapp went on to explain that the interest-free loans have helped Airmen with basic living expenses and kept them from going to off-base establishments to get fast cash or loans that can charge up to 300 percent or more in interest depending on the type of loan and time it takes to pay it off—putting the Airman deeper in debt.

Examples of other programs available to Airmen under the AFAS are Give Parents a Break, periodic child care offered by base child development centers when a spouse is deployed or during other personal emergencies; Car Care Because We Care, a program to fund oil changes; and Heartlink, a dependent spouse orientation program.

For more information on the AFAS at Wright-Patt, contact the A&FRC at (937) 257-3592.

Submitted photo Gary Sapp, community readiness consultant at the Airman & Family Readiness Center and Air Force Aid Society officer for WPAFB, reviews an Airman’s finances to develop a budget and to determine if the Airman needs assistance from the AFAS. The AFAS is a non-profit organization and the official charity for the U.S. Air Force to help relieve financial hardships of Air Force members and their families and to assist them in financing their higher education goals.
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2017/03/web1_170223-F-HA934-007.jpgSubmitted photo Gary Sapp, community readiness consultant at the Airman & Family Readiness Center and Air Force Aid Society officer for WPAFB, reviews an Airman’s finances to develop a budget and to determine if the Airman needs assistance from the AFAS. The AFAS is a non-profit organization and the official charity for the U.S. Air Force to help relieve financial hardships of Air Force members and their families and to assist them in financing their higher education goals.

Greene County News

Story courtesy of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

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