Chamber’s Courtis to assist MCAS-Yuma
He will serve as base’s 1st-ever auxiliary commander, boost community outreach
While John Courtis has plenty on his plate as executive director of the Yuma County Chamber of Commerce, he’s taken on another role as well.
He was recently appointed as the first auxiliary commander for Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, a volunteer position created by Col. David Suggs after he became commanding officer of the base 1.5 years ago.
While MCAS and the community share good relations, Suggs felt that it could be improved upon.
Taking a page from the Air Force, which has developed an honorary commander program at each of its bases, Suggs decided to create an auxiliary commander program for MCAS. The auxiliary commander would be a prominent member of the community in a position to “bridge the gap” between the Marines and the community, a civilian who would promote awareness of MCAS’s mission while sharing with the base what the community has to offer the Marines.
“It’s all about improving that flow of communication,” Suggs said. Both ways.
And he hit on the “perfect” candidate with Courtis, whose appointment was announced by Suggs during his Christmas party in December.
“He’s fantastic,” said Suggs. “He’s Mr. Yuma. He’s involved in the community and at nearly every event I go to.”
Responded Courtis: “So, so very honored, humbled and excited to have been chosen to be the first auxiliary commander of MCAS Yuma. I look forward to the mission of helping the colonel and his staff get the word out to the community about the transformational work they do protecting our freedoms and the amazing men and women that are doing it.”
He’s still feeling his way on how to tell those stories, such as through social media. And he will have Suggs as a guest on the weekly Chamber Chatter Wednesday at 8 a.m. on KBLU.
The chamber has a history of supporting MCAS through its Military Affairs Committee and sponsorship of Yuma’s Military Appreciation Day to be held Feb. 16 on Main Street. In addition, Courtis is involved in Yuma 50, a community-based group that serves as an advocate and voice for the local military installations.
In a letter to Courtis, Suggs states, “We believe that actively integrating community leaders into the Marine Corps family builds strong relationships vital to the future success of Yuma and the Marine Corps.”
How Courtis goes about fulfilling his mission is a blank slate. “It’s a brand new program,” Suggs said. “John has free rein to do the job. I want to run with it as hard as possible and get as much information out as possible. Break down barriers so the community better understands the base and get my Marines more involved in the community … they get to do something besides turn a wrench on the flightline.”
That was a vow Suggs made in his acceptance speech when he took over as commanding officer on June 27, 2017. “I have 1,600 single Marines on base. A large percent are teenagers who last year were seniors in high school. They’re not from Yuma. They’re in a new environment that’s not a cool place like San Diego. They don’t understand Yuma is a pretty awesome place to be. There’s so much activity here.”
Like last weekend’s rodeo, the taco festival, the upcoming Midnight at the Oasis, concerts, the Sand Dunes and the river, he offered as some examples.
“The civilians are out, the Marines are out and they’re talking to each other,” Suggs said. “Maybe they form friendships. Those are the kinds of connections I want to create.”
Some Marines do get involved in the community, attending events, participating in activities and volunteering. But Suggs was looking for a way to get more of them off the base and out enjoying the community. Then he heard about the Air Force Blue Blazer program at Luke Air Force Base where honorary commanders are appointed for a twofold mission: 1) educate key community leaders about the varied missions of the base and its squadrons, and 2) foster a supportive relationship with the community, increase military involvement in civic endeavors and organizations and make members of the local community part of the base family.
Then after they’ve served two years, former honorary commanders become part of an alumni group that continues to act as ambassadors for the base.
It’s a bit complicated to establish honorary positions in the military, Suggs said, so he came up with the idea of creating the auxiliary commander program. It took about a year to develop the program with two criteria: the position couldn’t go to someone who had served in the military (to ensure a civilian perspective) nor could it go to anyone in political office to avoid politics. The auxiliary commander would serve two years, then hopefully continue to be involved as an alumnus while a new person would be appointed to take on the position.
As auxiliary commander, Courtis sits in on the base’s department head meetings, an experience he likens to being in the boardroom of a major corporation. There he gets a pulse of what is going on with MCAS, understanding of the base’s needs and what needs to be shared with the community.
“There are human beings there,” Courtis continued. “They’re Marines but they’re people, too. They choose to do this. They put themselves in harm’s way. We have to tell their stories … spread the word about MCAS and the men and women who are doing great things.”
He concluded: “People drive by the chain link fence (around MCAS) and see the hangars but they don’t see the families, the drills or what is going on inside the gate. I’ll help tell that story.”