Submitted by: MCAS New River
Story by: Lance Cpl. Rebekka S. Heite
Story Identification #: 200711915820

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION NEW RIVER, N.C.(Jan. 19, 2007) -- Approximately 30 Marine Helicopter Training Squadron 302 wives gathered aboard the Station for “Jane Wayne Day.” The visit included a trip to the pistol range, the CH-53E simulator, the HMT-302 hangar and a speech by Lt. Col. Archibald M. McLellan, HMT-302 commanding officer.

“(Jane Wayne Day) give spouses a chance to see what their husbands do, and more importantly, it gives them a chance to find others with their same situation,” said McLellan. “The solutions to their problems are always better when they come to them collectively, especially when their husband is deployed. All of the husbands will be going to a deploying squadron and they don’t know if they are going to have a day before that deployment, or a month. By hosting Jane Wayne Day, we’re helping to make the deployment easier for the wife. She will know where to go when she has a problem while he is deployed.”

During Jane Wayne Day, the wives toured the office areas of HMT-302 before being taught by Marines how to shoot the M-9 pistol and how to fly the CH-53E simulator.
The day was all about making life easier for the wives by giving them a glimpse into the daily work of their husbands.

“I have been married for eight years, and this is the first time I have heard of Jane Wayne Day,” said Marivel Hernandez, wife of Capt. Rudy Hernandez, HMT-302 quality assurance officer.

“It’s important to see what he goes through everyday, and to meet other wives on a different level than the Marine Corps Ball or a Christmas party,” she added. “It’s up to me to become involved.”

During the introduction brief, the wives were informed about the key volunteer network and how it can keep them involved by connecting spouses so they can learn from each other, said Sgt. Maj. Blaine H. Jackson, HMT-302 sergeant major.

“You’d be amazed what you can learn,” he added.

After the brief, the wives were given a tour of all the offices and were allowed inside a ‘Super Stallion’ to see the helicopter from the inside out.

“(Jane Wayne Day) brings the community together,” said Staff Sgt. Michael Raborn, HMT-302 crew chief, who answered the wives’ questions. “It brings unity to the squadron.”

After the visit to the hangar, the wives made their way to the pistol range, where they fired 15 rounds in groups of five.

“Shannon is a much better shot than her husband,” said Cpl. Brian Bruce, HMT-302 helicopter mechanic. Her husband, Cpl. Eric Countryman, is also a HMT-302 helicopter mechanic. Shannon fired most of her rounds into the black and was the best shot of her 10 person firing squad.

The wives all went back to the Family Team Building Center and ate lunch together while small groups were taken to the simulators, and after all who wished to go to the simulator had gone, McLellan finished the day with a true commanding officer’s touch -- ‘School circle everyone!’

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