Warrior of the Week -- Master Sgt. Israel Hanks

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Anastasia Wasem
  • 319th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  Living in a one-stoplight town and having a graduating high school class of 74 made Master Sgt. Israel Hanks dream about bigger things and faraway places.

When he was 19, this now 38-year-old Paddock Lake, Wis., native joined the Air Force to not only serve his country but also see the world.

"I wanted to go anywhere overseas and away from home," said Sergeant "Izzy" Hanks, whose first assignment was to K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Mich., which was only 323 miles from his hometown.

After spending six years as a Security Forces Airman at K.I. Sawyer AFB, Osan AB, Korea, and Hickam AFB, Hawaii, Sergeant Hanks applied to be a boom operator and was accepted.

"I've been happy ever since," laughed Sergeant Hanks about switching career fields.

Currently, Sergeant Hanks is the operations superintendent for the 905th Air Refueling Squadron and is also the acting superintendent. As he explains it, his jobs entails him to manage the boom operators within the 905th ARS by planning TDY's, deployments, missions and leave.

As a fairly new senior non-commission-officer, Sergeant Hanks' advice to young Airmen is to do the best at whatever task is given; by trying the hardest you can, success will undoubtedly follow.

On Dec. 5, the day that he is scheduled to PCS, Sergeant Hanks will have been at Grand Forks AFB for two-years and three days (not that he's counting).

"The winters are long but the summers are beautiful," said Sergeant Hanks about his time here, adding that the community's support of the base is unparalleled.

Sergeant Hanks will be leaving Grand Forks AFB to be reassigned to Travis AFB, Calif., as a team leader for the Contingency Response Wing. The role of the CRW is to response to incidents, such as attacks or humanitarian needs, within Pacific Air Forces.

Despite the end being near for the 905th ARS, Sergeant Hanks says that he is very proud of the way the Airmen within the squadron are reacting.

"The 905th is going out with a bang," said Sergeant Hanks. "For instance, we won Summer Bash. And despite the end of the 905th being near, the squadron is still deploying and flying in order to support the mission until the very end."