Feb. 23—CHEYENNE — In 2018, Carolyn Ritschard was asked how she could help airmen at F.E. Warren Air Force Base get more involved in the community. A year later, she launched the Adopt An Airman program and has been program director since.

The program launched in February 2019, and has served nearly 500 airmen since, with more on the waiting list.

Adopting an airman does not mean that they are moving in to live with a new family. It simply pairs one or more airmen with local hosts who volunteer to weave one or more airmen into their everyday life.

The airmen in the program are brand new to the Air Force and on their first assignment. They are usually between the ages of 18 and 24. Any individual or family who lives in Laramie County can sign up to be a host.

Airmen and hosts each fill out a survey and are interviewed, then paired with who the program coordinators think will be a good match. For Andrea and Shane Allen, it has always worked out well.

The Allens have hosted around 10 airmen over the five years the program has existed. Some have been officially paired with them through the program, and some are friends of the adopted airmen that have informally also become adopted airmen for the Allens.

“They are part of our family now,” Andrea said.

“I really wanted to kind of get, like, plugged in, and this seemed like the best option for it,” said Keafer Haller, who started at F.E. Warren a few months ago and was paired with the Allens.

Andrea said they enjoy introducing airmen from across the country to the western culture. Some have learned how to ride a horse and rope and even volunteered at a ranch.

Some airmen have concluded their time at F.E. Warren and gone on to their second station, but the Allens stay in touch. Andrea and her daughter, Molly, visited one in San Antonio, and the family has plans to visit another in South Carolina soon, as well.

“Even though I am no longer an airman starting in June, I still feel like I can come and be welcome, even though I am not an airman anymore,” said Olivia Chambers, who was “adopted” by the Allens around two years ago.

The Allens have been around for milestones of their airmen, like weddings and babies being born. They hosted an airman’s family at their home when one of them was getting married.

Andrea said she tries to get her airmen involved in the community through volunteer opportunities, and some have volunteered with the Laramie County Grief Support Group.

They have also been there for her during tough times. “[Carolyn] wanted to start this program so that when airmen are brand new at a base, that they have some connection and support. And then, it ended up being them supporting our family,” she said. “Those guys will always be part of our family.”

Megan Hesser was unsure of whether she wanted to serve as a host in the program at first.

“We just weren’t sure how that would fit. But [Carolyn] was very reassuring that, most of the time, it’s pretty easy to just incorporate them into what you already do as a family,” she said. For Hesser’s family, that was hockey.

Her two children, Grayson, 11, and Kenna, 8, both play hockey. Justin Niece was looking for the opportunity to keep playing. Now, he coaches them, and he also volunteers to coach an under-8 hockey team for Cheyenne Capitals Youth Hockey.

“Every time he comes over, he always has his hockey gear in his car. So, he always gets a stick and gloves, and they go [practice],” Hesser said. “We actually built an outdoor ice rink … at our house, and so they’ve either been there or in the garage on the concrete. I’ve had to go fish pucks out of the pasture.”

Niece joined the family last fall, just in time for hockey season.

Glenn Quattlebaum was also paired with the Hessers and has been with them for nearly four years.

“It’s like having a family away from home. I get to experience different things that I never thought I’d get to experience,” he said.

Quattlebaum enjoys Nerf wars with the kids and traveling to Colorado with the family for hockey games.

Ritschard said that now that the program has been in place for five years, it is easy to recognize the benefits for both the airmen and the community. She said it makes them feel welcomed and have connection to the community, especially when it is the first move away from home. For the community, she said, it has been educational to learn about what the airmen do, and hosts are also given access to the base.

“An airman’s first assignment really does set the stage for the rest of their military career. Whether you’re enlisted or an officer, your first assignment really is your first exposure as far as what military life is going to be like,” she said. “And the welcoming-ness of a community makes such a difference. Otherwise, you just feel like you’re living in an island.”

Ritschard structured the program around a similar program for cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Now, she said other Air Force bases have been reaching out to her to try to set up a program similar to theirs.

There have been 490 airmen paired with 157 hosts in the past five years. Ritschard said there are many more airmen on the waiting list, and she hopes to have more community members volunteer to be a host.

Noah Zahn is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle’s local government/business reporter. He can be reached at 307-633-3128 or nzahn@wyomingnews.com. Follow him on X @NoahZahnn.