• DALLAS
During a recent event honoring Veterans Day this year, several Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) executives who are veterans themselves talked about their careers in military service and with the Exchange, as well as other aspects of their many years being out in the field.
Tom Shull, Exchange director/chief executive officer (CEO), explained during the Nov. 6 HEROES event that the origins of Veterans Day are found in the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I — on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.
“I’m reminded of that because in my time as a Vietnam-era veteran and as someone who has been at the Exchange and with all you wonderful teammates through these many years, we are serving those who serve,” he noted.
AAFES executives remarking about their careers included
Chief Administrative Officer Tom Lozier, a Navy veteran; Senior Vice President (SVP), Supply Chain Fred Hannah, an Army veteran; Real Estate SVP Mike Smietana, an Air Force veteran; and South Central Regional Vice President (VP) Antonio Porter, a Marine veteran.
Each executive spoke about their leadership philosophies, mentors and experiences with the Exchange, both during their military service and during their time with the organization.
TOM LOZIER
Lozier, a 1974 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, talked about how his experiences as a Midshipman helped shape him into the leader he is today.
“I learned a lot about leadership at the Naval Academy,” Lozier said. “There were some terrific people there, great leaders who I tried to copy. And with their leadership style, I knew what motivated me and I wanted to use that style when I graduated from the academy and was commissioned as a naval officer.”
Across the Severn River from the Naval Academy was a small naval station with a Navy Exchange, where Lozier and other Midshipmen went as often as they could.
He later spent two years stationed on a ship that had a small store, which he said worked wonders for the Sailors’ morale.
“Any time we got close to a military installation, if we had a reason to go there, we would,” he said. “One of the prime reasons would always be to make a stop and take a break at whatever military exchange was there, an AAFES Exchange or a Navy Exchange, and do some shopping and have a good time and meet other people who were like we were.”
During Lozier’s time at the Naval Academy, the U.S. was still fighting the Vietnam War, and many people didn’t look favorably upon the military, Lozier said.
“It was a difficult time when we weren’t at military installations,” he said. “It was evident that we were in the military just by our haircuts and dress and how we were was so different than it is today. It’s great the way it is today, the way the military gets the support it gets.”
FRED HANNAH
Hannah, who served 32 years in the Army, said he believes that leadership is the art of influencing people.
“The Army will tell you that it’s a process of influencing people to accomplish the mission and improve an organization,” he said. “I think you can bring that definition into the Exchange in terms of how our leadership operates and lead us.”
Hannah said there are characteristics that define leadership and allow leaders to grow. For him, integrity comes first.
Leadership also involves having a vision, the ability to communicate that vision, and empathy for the people you’re leading, he said.
He cited a lesson he learned as a young second lieutenant.
“I walked into my platoon area, and I said to my platoon sergeant, ‘Where’s my office?’” Hannah said. “He gave me a clipboard and a memo pad and a Skilcraft black pen and said, ‘Sir, here’s your office. What I want you to do over the next 30 days is sit down with all 28 of your Soldiers and get to know them, get to know their families and get to know what it is that they desire.’
“There was no more profound lesson for me than that,” he added. “Because what it told me more than anything is that in order to lead folks, you have to get to know folks. And that’s a trait that I have carried with me. It’s a leadership trait that I apply everywhere I go.”
Before he retired from the Army, Hannah got an up-close look at the Exchange when he was its Europe/Southwest Asia commander from 2011 to 2014.
He met Shull, who he cited as a mentor and strong leader who helped him gain confidence in the retail world.
But other Exchange leaders helped him as well.
“I reached out to the SVPs,” he said. “The one who gave me the most salient vote of confidence and wisdom was [Eastern Region SVP] Bob White. I reached out to him at my very first Main Store Manager/General Manager Conference and said, ‘Hey, I want to be value-added to the organization and any coaching or mentoring you can give me would be appreciated.’
“To this day, he has not stopped mentoring me, so I appreciate that.”
He also cited President Jason Rosenberg, Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer (EVP/COO) Marla Randolph and EVP/Chief Human Resources Officer Dr. Patrick Oldenburgh Jr. as mentors.
MIKE SMIETANA
Smietana, a HEROES co-executive champion, related that he has had two jobs in his life: The Air Force and the Exchange.
“I count my blessings that I’ve had a calling that I love for 42-plus years,” said Smietana, who served 26 years in the Air Force and joined the Exchange in 2008.
He added that during the beginning of those 42 years, the Exchange helped him get through a rough time.
“I joined the service after Vietnam, in 1982,” Smietana said. “I didn’t know what I was doing. I landed at Lackland Air Force Base as a trainee in the middle of the night and I was in shock and I wanted to quit.
“And for the first two weeks, the only thing that kept me going was a little store there at Lackland Air Force Base that gave me some normalcy in my life,” he added. “I ended up succeeding, but those first two weeks were pretty bad, so thank you, AAFES, for having a store that would sell me some stuff.”
Smietana said that his first assignment was at Arnold AFS (now Arnold AFB) in Tennessee. His wife, 21 at the time, was pregnant.
“The thing at the time was a new BX they built at Arnold Air Force Station,” he said. “It was fantastic. It kind of set the tone for me and AAFES and my family.”
During two consecutive overseas assignments, Smietana said, the Exchange was a lifesaver, providing more normalcy for his family. His wife even worked as a concessionaire at an Exchange in England. Sometimes, all it took for a sense of normalcy was doing something simple.
“On weekends, we’d go to the Feltwell [AFB] furniture store to buy furniture and look at things,” he said. “That was a ‘taste of home’ kind of thing. That’s where the bond is normally established between the military and AAFES.”
The Exchange has meant so much to his family, Smietana said, talking directly about what it meant to his wife.
“AAFES has probably meant even more to her than it has to me,” Smietana said. “I go back to what Mr. Shull has said many times: If the Air Force and AAFES takes care of my family, I’m ‘all in’ for them and they certainly did that for my spouse. She rattled off several ways that AAFES has supported her over the years.”
ANTONIO PORTER
Porter, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps for more than 22 years, including active and reserve duty, was looking for a part-time job after he made the transition to the reserves, because he wanted to spend time with his family.
“I grew up shopping at the Exchange, with my family and my dad,” Porter said. “He was an Army command sergeant major who was stationed all over the world. He ended up retiring at Fort Moore [formerly Fort Benning].
“My mom was an only child, but she had two best friends who worked for the Exchange. Shirlene Blanton and Rosa Bell retired from the Exchange with more than 86 years of service. I remember them always sharing their stories with us.
“Outside of my parents and grandparents, the best Christmas and birthday gifts always came from them. So truly, the Exchange was part of my life growing up.”
Porter said a highlight of his Exchange career was when he was selected to serve as the general manager (GM) in Okinawa — more than 25 years after arriving at Camp Kinser on Okinawa, his first duty station.
“Who could imagine returning to Okinawa some 25-plus years later, and how it brought my life full circle?” he said. “I still remembered what I was most needing and looking for when I first visited the Exchange back when I was stationed at Camp Kinser.
“When I became general manager, I felt that I could really help the service members, from the civilian side this time. Also, being able to meet with command and the community to share our story is something that I’m so honored to do.
“And at that time, my son was stationed at Camp Schwab, which is one of the northern bases on Okinawa. It was good to be able to spend time with him, and he kind of served as my ‘secret shopper’ and provided me with information on what was going on at Camp Schwab.”
(Porter’s son is currently stationed at MCB Quantico, Va.; his daughter is in the Army, stationed at Fort McNair, D.C.)
CLOSING REMARKS
“We need to remind ourselves each day of what veterans have done for all of us,” Shull said. “I love the stories that were shared with us by these great leaders, across all services.
“I remember a day when I would go through an airport in uniform and not one person would stop me,” he added. “This was in the ’70s, and no one acknowledged the uniform or the fact that I was serving.
“That’s changed tremendously in the last 15-to-20 years, particularly the war years, and we need to sustain that.”
HEROES is the Exchange’s special emphasis program that recognizes the contributions and sacrifices of Exchange associates who are military veterans, their spouses and family members.
Source: AAFES
Edited by Larry Lapka
