Lynn Coggins, 533rd Training Squadron chief of training management flight, poses with a photo of his flight from Basic Military Training, Nov. 7, 2014, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Veterans Day honors those who have served in the United States Armed Forces. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Robert J. Volio/Released)

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Lynn Coggins

Published Nov. 10, 2014
By Airman Robert J. Volio

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Team Vandenberg honors those who served and continue to serve.

Q: When did you begin serving? When did you retire?
A: I came into the Air Force on July 27, 1973 and retired on October 1, 1993.

Q: What was your job?
A: Oh, goodness. I was all over the place. I started out in chapel management, which was primarily an administrative job dealing with the financial and administrative ends of things. From there, I started war planning in the logistics field. I went from bibles to bombs, as I tell people. Finally, I came back into the chapel management field and then ended up working at the Air Reserve Personnel Center during my last five years.

Q: What is your current job?
A: I am the chief of the training management flight for the 533rd Training Squadron. Primarily, my job consists of taking care of everything from getting the students here to getting them into the seats. Training line numbers, tracking them in the computer systems so they get credit, making sure that the classrooms and the instructors have everything they need are just some examples. So, we take care of everything up to the time we drop them off at the front door and let the instructors start teaching.

Q: What does Veterans Day mean to you?
A: I have personal ties to Veterans Day because both my father and father-in-law were veterans. So when I think of a veteran, I think more in terms of them because they both fought in World War II. I think of those people who have actually gone downrange and actually put their lives on the line to help this country maintain what it is that we try to stand for. I don't take that lightly and I don't say that glibly, I truly mean it. Everything that I enjoy in my life is because somebody was willing to put their life on the line.

Q: What does it mean to be a veteran yourself?
A: For me, it simply means that I've done - at least in a small way - something to help make this country a little bit better. I'm awfully proud of this country. I've lived all over the world, traveled to a lot of different countries and in all the time that I've ever been out there, I've never seen any place where I'd say, 'I would gladly trade what I have here to go live there.'

Q: What should Vandenberg Airmen reflect upon this upcoming Veterans Day?
A: I would tell Vandenberg Airmen to reflect upon the proud tradition of military service we have in this country. They're continuing a legacy that proves this country is worth fighting, and even dying, for.