A crisp organization Published July 2, 2007 By Col. Jay Raymond 21st Space Wing commander PETERSON AFB, Colo. -- Everyone has an image in their mind of a "crisp" Airman. What comes to my mind are the Airmen with creased uniforms, spit polished boots, impeccable appearance, and an uncompromising military bearing. In my first few days as your Wing commander, I have spotted many crisp Airmen. Staff Sgt. Jennifer Sherman, 21st Medical Group, was extremely crisp as she sang our National Anthem, and Tech. Sgts. Andrew Fulbright and Victor Pimentel, and Staff Sgts. Daron Holmes and Benny Windom of the Honor Guard were impeccable as they presented the colors at the change of command ceremony June 28. On June 29 I visited the 21st Security Forces Squadron and spoke to our defenders at guard mount. Tech. Sgt. Richard Degrand, the flight chief, was extremely crisp and you could immediately sense that he was firmly in charge of his flight and the flight was focused on protecting our installation. After guard mount, Chief Master Sgt. Tim Omdal and I ate breakfast at Aragon Dining Hall. At the dining hall, I met Mrs. Susan Henry. Susan has worked at the Dining Hall for 15 years and you could sense the pride she had in her job and she did it extremely well. I would suggest that just as there are crisp individuals, there are crisp organizations. Crisp organizations are mission focused and highly disciplined; they develop leaders at all levels, they pay close attention to details, and most importantly they foster a climate that does not except mediocrity--instead they relentlessly strive for excellence. Just as it is easy to spot a crisp Airman out of a crowd, you can just as easily identify a crisp organization. You can sense a crisp organization as soon as you drive onto the base, visit a squadron, flight or work center. Take a look around your workcenter, are the bulletin boards up to date, does the office maintain a professional appearance, are customs and courtesies being used, are suspense's being met, is flawless mission accomplishment the standard of your flight? The importance of our space superiority, expeditionary and base support missions demands a very high standard...perfection! As I stated in my change of command speech, and in last week's commander's corner article, flawless operations is the 21st Space Wing standard, not our goal. Next week, I travel to Thule Air Base, Greenland, to officiate the 821st Air Base Group change of command. I look forward to meeting many more crisp Airmen and visiting a Group that professionally operates and maintains this critical infrastructure under very challenging conditions. Let's all continue to focus on our mission, pay close attention to the details, and together let's ensure the 21st Space Wing is an organization that is easily identified as being crisp.