NIAGARA FALLS AIR RESERVE STATION, N.Y. -- As any successful organization might tell you it’s the people who make the difference. The 914th Air Refueling Wing at Niagara Falls ARS is no exception. Recruiters at Niagara have received numerous awards for their recruiting efforts and according to Senior Master Sgt. Kevin French, 914th ARW Recruiting flight chief, typically the Northeast region is much harder to recruit as compared to other areas such as the Southeast region, but that doesn’t seem to slow them down.
914th Recruiting personnel have many recruiting tools at their disposal to help with the difficult job of meeting their goals. A lot of time and legwork goes into it. Visiting high schools, community colleges, posting signs, answering phones, e-mails, etc. French explained one of the most effective programs the recruiter has is the very successful Share Your Adventure Program formerly known as Get1 Now and expanded on how the program works.
“It’s an opportunity for our reserve members to refer friends, family or anyone they come across to serve in the Air Force Reserve," said French. "The referrals are tracked in our system. If a referral comes in and sees one of our recruiters, the unit member’s info is then input into the program. The reservist can also download the Share Your Adventure app themselves on their phone and enter their referral name into it and the name would go to the appropriate recruiter.”
Members can win awards like streaming media devices, wireless ear buds, portable tool kits, personal safes, and other awards. The recruiting flight gets recognized as well at the annual Air Force Reserve recruiting conference.
Niagara has won the Share Your Adventure Award for the last two years. According to French, the program is extremely successful.
“The unit helps with generating leads for us," said French. "They know exactly what needs to be done. For instance, they know about height and weight, education, the Military Entrance Processing Station, physical fitness, etc. That helps us out a lot. It’s like unit members are recruiters as well.”
Tech. Sgt. Alexander Pacheco, line recruiter added, “This is a great way to give unit members the opportunity to pick and choose who they want to work with. Additionally, it provides them the chance to be rewarded for their referrals. As recruiters, it’s difficult to be in as large a zone as we have to cover. When it’s all said and done we are all recruiters, every member who wears this uniform has the ability to spread Air Force Reserve awareness.”