Rock Solid Warrior: SrA Stephan Giorgio

Published Aug. 9, 2017
By Tech. Sgt. Jonathan Hehnly
386th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

This week's Rock Solid Warrior is Senior Airman Stephan Giorgio, a contracting officer with the 386th Expeditionary Contracting Squadron, deployed from Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho. The Rock Solid Warrior program is a way to recognize and spotlight the Airmen of the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing for their positive impact and commitment to the mission.

What is your current job title, unit and duties?
I am a Contracting Officer at the 386th Expeditionary Contracting Squadron. I buy supplies and services for the 386th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron.

Which squadron and base are you deployed from?
366th Contracting Squadron, Mountain Home AFB, Idaho

Why did you join the Air Force?
Like most people that join I wanted to provide a better life for my family. I also wanted to leave Rhode Island and explore the world.

How long have you been in the Air Force and what has your military career been like ?
I have been in for four years and this is my first deployment. My career in the military has allowed me to go to classes and events that I would never have had normally have the opportunity to do so otherwise.

How is your deployed unit/job different from your home unit/job?
Back home there are a lot of mandatory timelines for purchases that we are unable to shorten. Out here purchases can happen very quickly because the acquisition process is streamlined. For example, I had an urgent requirement come down for concrete pads that in the states would have taken at least a month to purchase but here I was able to be purchase it in less than 48 hours.

What are some of your professional and personal goals?
This is my second time testing for staff sergeant so I am hoping to make it this year. Finishing college is my other priority. I also want to try to PCS, hopefully somewhere overseas.

What is your favorite part of your mission here?
That’s easy, buying the unique items that the Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron needs to keep this base running and then getting to quality test them. Everything from bomb suits for the explosive ordnance disposal flight and UV lights that help the Entomology folks find scorpions, to repairing a lightbulb recycling machine. I also get to immediately see my impact here. If I don’t buy the air conditioning units for HVAC or the parts for power production to keep the generators running it effects mission readiness.

What are some of your hobbies?
I spend a lot of time after hours at my squadron playing board games like Settlers of Catan and Pandemic. When I’m not playing board games we usually have Rocket League and Star Wars Battlefront Tournaments.

What are some of the challenges you face here? How do you overcome them?
The biggest challenge here is getting items in and out of country. Customs and trade embargos affect us more than you would think. A lot of the items I buy can’t be sourced locally so getting mission critical items here quickly from the states can be a daunting task. I am fortunate to have a great team at the Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron that works miracles on a weekly basis.