Left to right Susan Lovelace, Gov. Jan Brewer & Ron Sites at the 2012 FCP Annual Meeting
For those who have not followed the F-35 EIS process closely, let me explain how important the month of February was. The Environmental Impact Statement for the F-35 mission has been an ongoing process for years, and we reached a large milestone for the week of February 13th thru February 16th.
This was the public’s opportunity to comment on the Draft EIS released for each base after years of hard work. This was your opportunity to share your support or concerns about a decision that will affect this valley for 40+ more years. You had the chance to speak about noise, air quality, socioeconomics, property rights, quality of life or just simply say you enjoy your freedoms as an American and you love the Air Force. And YOU DID…in a big way.
The 4 public hearings brought out almost 1,500 individuals not ready to share their concerns but state their support. Thank You!!! The few comments with concerns were dwarfed by the overwhelming love this community has for Luke AFB and the airmen serving. Elected officials were to be seen everywhere, civic leaders and Arizona Business also stepped to the microphone to say “We love the Sound of Freedom”.
This was a very important week that many individuals had put thousands of hours into…and it was a SLAM DUNK, GRAND SLAM, HAT TRICK, TOUCHDOWN, POLESETTING performance followed by a HOLE IN ONE on a Par 5. Great work municipal leaders, great work Luke Forward, great work FCP, and most of all, great work Valley of the Sun residents.
Below is the public comment I was privileged enough to share on behalf of FCP and our supporters, and I thank you for the opportunity. Enjoy!!!
FCP is the Leading Support & Advocacy organization supporting Luke AFB
We are humbled and privileged everyday to support the men, women, families and mission of Luke AFB
We support the base in 3 core areas: Health & Human Services – Quality of Life
Luke AFB Events & Awards Programs – Assisting in maintaining the culture & tradition of Luke & Advocating on behalf of Luke AFBOur areas of emphasis is in that order respectively
While our advocating efforts have assisted in submitting over 9,000 electronic public support comment cards, the largest core of our business is supporting programs and services @ Luke which that assist to the high quality of life Luke Airmen enjoy during their time here.
We accomplish our mission through the incredible support we receive from AZ business, civic leaders & organizations, tribal nations and local municipalities because they truly understand the value of supporting this unique military installation
Besides the fact that Luke AFB provides the best environment to accomplish their critical mission of training the world’s greatest fighter pilots & maintainers for the AF, (and a special thanks needs to given to our elected officials past & present who made that possible) the airmen enjoy a quality of life that is second to none while here
While that statement might sound biased, that is the feedback we consistently get from the airmen. It is also a deciding factor why they often choose to retire in our community
FCP has been recognized by the AF and AETC for the support we provide, and the best way for us to continue our privileged responsibility is for the AF to select Luke AFB as the next location to bed down the training mission of the F-35
So on behalf of FCP & all who support us, we thank you for the time and opportunity to make these valuable statements in support of Luke AFB.
