Air Force family comes to Airman's aid

Published Oct. 6, 2015
By Annette Crawford
Air Force Recruiting Service Public Affairs

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas -- A young Airman and his wife learned the meaning of "Air Force family" firsthand after they lost all their possessions in a fire in Oklahoma City, Aug. 3.

Airman 1st Class Joshua Crespo was finishing his stint with the Recruiter Assistance Program at the 349th Recruiting Squadron. He had spent the afternoon packing his car for the drive to his first assignment - the 673rd Security Forces Squadron at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. His wife, Callye, was meeting with a friend who was going to rent their condo once they left.

As he sat on the floor organizing his belongings, he looked up and saw smoke coming out of his air vent.

"My first reaction was to get my two dogs out, and grab a binder of important documents I hadn't packed yet. I got the dogs out first, and on my way back, the older of the two ran back in and hid in her bed; she knew something was wrong," Crespo said.

Even though the smoke was much thicker when he returned, he managed to get the dog in one arm and the binder in the other. Once outside and safely away from the burning condo, he borrowed a neighbor's phone to call his wife. When she didn't answer the call, he sent a text - "fire fire fire. This is your husband."

The next call he made was to the recruiter he had worked with on RAP - Master Sgt. Eduardo Torres of E-Flight. Torres called the squadron first sergeant, Master Sgt. Andrew Wojciuch, to let him know what had happened. While Crespo, his wife and their dogs were safe, they lost nearly everything they owned.

Wojciuch told Crespo to get a new driver's license in the morning (his wallet had been lost in the fire), and then asked him to meet him at the main gate at Tinker Air Force Base. Once there, the first sergeant escorted him around base.

"While he was getting his ID card, to save time, I went to the legal office to tell them the story," Wojciuch said. "When he was done getting his ID card, we all walked to the legal office and got them a power of attorney. His wife's family is from Oklahoma City and are going to take care of everything with their insurance for their condo."

They then went to the Airman and Family Readiness Center to get clothes from the Airmen's Attic and meet with a counselor. Wojciuch's wife had set up the appointment the night before and prebriefed the counselors.

"I got them a check from Operation Warmheart for $750 and got in contact with the first sergeant for the security forces squadron at Elmendorf," Wojciuch said. "I sent him a list of things that they would need when they get to Alaska."

"My initial response was first 'Are they OK? Is anyone injured?' After I was informed they made it out OK, I was told they had lost everything," said Crespo's present first sergeant, Senior Master Sgt. David Kalal, 673rd Security Forces Squadron. "At that point I reached out to A1C Crespo to find out specifically what we could do to help him and ease the stress. I reached out to the first sergeant council here at JBER and the 673rd SFS. We received a monetary donation from the first sergeant council as well as overwhelming support from the unit."

"I've never dealt with anything like this before," Wojciuch said. "I've been a first sergeant on Tinker since November 2013. I have a great network on the base and my wife works at the Airman and Family Readiness Center. When I told the Crespos' story at the first sergeant meeting on 4 August, my entire team was on board so I knew we would have no problem taking care of them."

Wojciuch said the experience of being a first sergeant at such a critical time in an Airman's life was overwhelming.

"The feeling I got from helping the Crespo family is why I became a first sergeant," he said. "The ability to help people in such a short amount of time is priceless. Talk about job fulfillment! They were so grateful when the day was done and they were able to leave Oklahoma on the date that they originally planned. The 349th and Tinker AFB worked extremely hard to put their lives back together the best we could. A1C Crespo and his wife show a lot of strength and their attitude was fantastic."

"My wife and I had lost everything. Our life literally crumbled before our eyes, but all of that was turned around with the help of the new family I gained," Crespo said. "The open arms and loving hearts of all the military families who helped us get back on our feet are forever in our thanks. Ultimately, I would say the phrase 'family comes first' speaks tremendous levels to me, even more so now."