Every Tuesday students in the Air Force ROTC program don one of their distinguishing uniforms. Whether wearing service blues or combat fatigues, cadets are an eye-catching sight walking on the Lawn, eating in a dining hall or sitting in the front row of a lecture.
What may not be so obvious from their appearance is that each week fourth-year College student Katrina Foley-Schultz is responsible for deciding which uniform her fellow AFROTC students will wear. As the AFROTC protocol officer, Foley-Schultz has her sights set further than the routine task of uniform selection. Foley-Shulz hopes to orchestrate something that will be equally ubiquitous to the University community: starting a chapter of the service organization Silver Wings here on Grounds.
While AFROTC is a very visible group, few students realize the possibility exists to get involved without actually becoming a cadet. That is precisely what Silver Wings is designed for, Foley-Schultz said. A national organization with over 50 years under its belt, Silver Wings advocates joint service projects aimed at strengthening civilian and military ties.
Through Silver Wings, University students and members of the Charlottesville area at large would unite with AFROTC cadets as members of Silver Wings, collaborating on a number of service and social activities, Foley-Schultz said. Such efforts will be aimed at improving the quality of life within the surrounding community, especially targeting veterans and injured soldiers, Foley-Schultz said.
Foley-Schultz said her interest in forming a Silver Wings chapter at the University was twofold. After attending an Air Force conference in the fall in Philadelphia, she learned that as a protocol officer, she had the authority to oversee an assembly of students and cadets in forming a branch of the national Silver Wings. Foley-Schultz also said she believed that those within the University community would open their arms to another outlet to serve others.
"I felt that because U.Va. is such a big, diverse school, why not try it?" Foley-Schultz said.
History
Before attending the conference, Foley-Schultz knew very little about Silver Wings. She said she discovered some students attempted to found the program at the University a few years ago but it ultimately did not take root. In fact, the University of Maryland and the University of Delaware are the only two schools that have Silver Wings chapters within the whole Southeast AFROTC region, Foley-Schultz said.
Silver Wings itself is an offshoot organization of Angel Flight, which formed its first official chapter in 1952 at the University of Omaha.
Fourth-year College student and AFROTC squadron commander Sarah Duey traced its lineage even further beyond this official coalescence. At a time when women were unable to join the Air Force, Angel Flight provided an outlet for women to get involved with an Air Force-affiliated service, especially those with cadets as significant others.
"It started as a girlfriends' organization," Duey said.
In 1996 the Executive Board of Directors decided to narrow the scope of Silver Wings' objectives, focusing on the college campus setting as the primary backdrop for community service.
Looking Forward
Foley-Schultz said the potential for involvement here on Grounds is high, but more people need to know about Silver Wings and its purpose.
A large part of their service would entail collaboration with the Arnold Air Society (AAS), a coed subgroup within AFROTC that University students also may know little about. Duey notes the AAS's objectives coincide with that of Silver Wings.
"Our goals are to increase professionalism within the Corps, promote good citizenship and to be the nucleus of the AFROTC to provide a good example of what an Air Force cadet should be," Duey said.
Recently AAS participated in an effort called Valentines for Vets, where members made and delivered cards for veterans and soldiers to local nursing homes and hospitals, including the University's medical center.
While the AAS also promotes honor and social service, it can only consist of cadets in AFROTC that undergo a semester-long initiation process. Silver Wings diverges from AAS in this vein; its membership is open to anyone in the University -- graduate students, law students, undergraduates of any major, Foley-Schultz said.
Additionally differing from AAS, Silver Wings does not necessitate training or any process of initiation.
"It's informal and fun but still professional and very much focused on service," Foley-Schultz said.
Currently Foley-Schultz said she has a small group of interested students. One of those students, AFROTC Cadet Audry Prince, expressed her enthusiasm for serving the community alongside her University peers.
"I am joining Silver Wings because I want to be an active member of my community and help others," Prince said. "Silver Wings is a very rewarding and empowering organization that allows both Air Force ROTC cadets and [other] college students to work together to better our community."
Avidly pursuing the addition of new members for Silver Wings, Foley-Schultz said she envisions a broad-based group of mainly civilian University students working with AFROTC cadets.
"I'd like to have Silver Wings be a strong established organization by 2007," Foley-Schultz said.
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