Rock Solid Warrior: Tech. Sgt. Clifford Cruz

Tech. Sgt. Clifford Cruz is a contracting officer with the 386th Expeditionary Contracting Squadron, undisclosed location, Southwest Asia. He provides contracting support to all base personnel including sister services and coalition partners. He has been selected by his leadership as this week's Rock Solid Warrior. He is deployed from the 48th Contracting Squadron, Royal Air Force Lakenheath, U.K. He is a native of Inarajan, Guam. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Marelise Wood)

Rock Solid Warrior: Tech. Sgt. Clifford Cruz

Published Oct. 4, 2013
386th Expeditionary Contracting Squadron

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- Rank/First & Last Name:
Tech.Sgt. Clifford Cruz

Deployed Unit:
386th Expeditionary Contracting Squadron

Duty Title:
Contracting Officer (CO)

Home unit/station:
48th Contracting Squadron, Royal Air Force Lakenheath

Family's military heritage:
Both grandfathers served; one Navy and one Air Force. My older brother is a Sgt. 1st Class in the Army.

What is your mission here?
My mission here is to provide superior contracting support for all base, sister service and coalition partner personnel quickly, legally and effectively.

What are some of the best parts of your mission?
One of the best parts of my job is the interaction with customers and contractors. I like knowing that what I am buying is making a difference in someone else's job or life.

What are some of the challenges you face while conducting your mission, and how do you overcome them?
One of the challenges we face is the high turnover rate of the people we work with. Whether they're our customers, resource advisors, force protection personnel or contracting officer representatives each person affects how we do our job. The way we overcome this challenge is constant education with all parties involved in the acquisition process.

How does your job differ in a deployed environment vs. home base?
My job out here compared to my home station differs in speed and quantity. Each CO cranks out a lot more contract actions in six months than they would home station in a year.

How many times have you deployed?
This is my fourth deployment.

What makes this deployment unique?
This deployment is unique because my wife gave birth to our first child, Eila, a couple months before I left. Watching her grow up through online video calls and reaching her early milestones like sitting up and rolling over has been tough.

Why did you join the Air Force?
I originally joined the Air Force for the education benefits. I stayed in because it made me a better person and I love my way of life.