Supporting Operation Warm heart

  • Published
  • By Airmen 1st Class Stephanie Englar and Daniel Lile
  • 14th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs
COLUMBUS AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. --  As the smell of steak wafted across Columbus Air Force Base, First Sergeants and other senior leaders were busy cooking steak and distributing it to Airmen at the Operation Warm Heart First Sergeant's Steak Burn April 11 at the Chapel Annex.

"We hold the Steak Burn on quarterly basis as means to help fund Operation Warm Heart," said Master Sgt. Maria Rodriguez, 14th Civil Engineering Squadron First Sergeant.

Operation Warm Heart is an Air Force-wide initiative to care for Airmen and their families.

"Operation Warm Heart provides help such as Thanksgiving Day baskets, meals during the holidays and angel tree gifts," said Rodriguez. "It also helps Airmen that may find themselves in a desperate situation and need some money to help them get in a better status. It is essentially a charity that goes right back to us here on base."

Along with providing help around the holidays, the First Sergeants perform random acts of kindness. Last July, the First Sergeants bought groceries at the commissary for Airmen and their spouses and also filled up Airmen's gas tanks at the Shopette.

"I have seen the benefits of operation Warm Heart," said Rodriguez. "I have personally been able to help an Airman because of the Steak Burn efforts so I feel like the efforts put in for the Steak Burn is enjoyable more than seeing it as work."

The next Steak Burn will be held in a few months.