Take Your Daughter and Sons to Work Day

  • Published
  • By Ms. Terri Scanlin
  • 174FW Family Program Coordinator
Hancock Field Air National Guard Base, Syracuse, NY --  On April 23rd, the 174th Fighter Wing Family Program Office hosted a "Take Your Daughter and Sons to Work Day" event. Twenty-six children of full-time members of the 174th Fighter Wing were in attendance. 

"This is our fourth year of hosting a "Take our Daughters and Sons To Work" Day at Hancock Field. Each year the children look forward to coming to the base and sharing the day with their parent. They also enjoy meeting other military kids and participating in the various activities. This event gives them an opportunity to experience a day in the life of the military member", said Ms. Terri Scanlin, 174FW Family Program Coordinator.

This year's theme was "Building Partnerships to Educate and Empower". The children, ages 8 to 12 years old, began the day by discussing occupations, incomes and expenses. Each child was given an occupation and was told what the average amount of monthly income they could make after ten years of experience. Then they discussed how much a house, utilities, groceries, automobiles, insurance, child care, clothing, and other costs of living were. Their assignment was to create a budget for their living expenses. They had to figure out how much they could afford with their designated monthly income. The conversations were intense as they were very careful trying not to exceed their income. Some were quite frugal with their money and did not choose to purchase a car so they could afford vacations and a nice home. 

Another activity they participated in was working as a team to build a business. Each team had to create a name for their business - an ice cream shop, a toy store, a clothing store and a donut shop. They discussed what each of their teammate' s job titles would be, how much they would make in a week, what tools and supplies they would need, and what kind of products or services they would offer. Each team created a logo and drew a picture of what their shop would look like. A couple teams even went so far as to compose a jingle or commercial. 

Maj. Michael Adamitis, 174FW Communications Flight Commander said, "My kids look forward to Take your Daughter and Sons to Work Day all year. They love coming to the base to see where Dad works and they always learn something new from the Family Support Center folks."

Staff Sergeant Paul Hrynio, of the 174th FW/Civil Engineer Squadron, and a former drill instructor, came to give the children some drill and ceremony instruction. The children learned how to assemble in a formation, stand at attention and parade rest, and making facing movements. 

Following the morning activities, each child joined their parents for lunch and a visit to their parents work sections. Each child interviewed their parent about their occupation and their work section and had the opportunity to tour parts of the base or even attend a meeting. After spending the afternoon with their parents, they returned to the dining facility to present their team project in front of the rest of the group and their parents. 

"This event is a great opportunity for our kids to come out and spend the day with their parents. A day with Mom or Dad at work is worth its weight in gold. I think seeing a parent in action has much more value than a story being told about work at the dinner table. This experience will help them to better understand what we do. And if that understanding creates an interest in military service or helps them cope with the stress of a parents deployment, we are all better served" said Col. Kevin W. Bradley, 174 FW Commander.

At the conclusion of the event, each child received a certificate of attendance and a gift bag from the "Take our Daughters and Sons to Work Day" organization. Not only did they walk away with these special gifts, but they walked away with a better understanding about the world of work and the different options they might never have dreamed of - often leading to personal life changes and new career directions.