By Jeff Mullin, Senior Writer
Enid News and Eagle
ENID —
The nine people honored as Partners In the Sky come from different backgrounds with different experiences, but all have one thing in common — they are judged to have gone above and beyond in their support of Vance Air Force Base.
The first six Partners In the Sky, selected in 1996 by then-71st Flying Training Wing commander Col. Buster Ellis (who retired in 2006 as a major general), were Margaret Buvinger, Mike Cooper, Oscar Curtis, Bill Shewey, Ed Greven and Ken Slack.
Since then three more people have received the Partner In the Sky designation — Jon Blankenship, Ernie Currier and Mary Feightner.
Here’s a look at the Partners In the Sky and their efforts in supporting Vance:
Margaret Buvinger
Buvinger was a charter member of the Vance-Enid Community Relations Council.
She represented Vance at the Department of Defense’s Joint Civilian Orientation Conference and the Air Force’s National Security Forum, and served on the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services.
Vance was just one of the local causes about which Buvinger was so passionate.
She was a member of the Enid Board of Education for 28 years and was managing director of Tri-State Music Festival for 19 years.
Buvinger twice was elected president of the Oklahoma State School Boards Association and served one term as National School Boards Association president.
She was the first female elder of Central Christian Church, was involved with Camp Fire, YWCA, YMCA, United Way, Community Development Support Association, Enid Higher Education Foundation, Phillips University and Enid-Phillips Symphony.
She died March 23, 2006, at the age of 84.
Oscar Curtis
The former manager of Enid’s JC Penney store was a longtime member of the Enid Chapter 214 of the Air Force Association, as well as the Vance-Enid Community Relations Council and the Military Affairs Committee of the Greater Enid Chamber of Commerce.
Often known as “Mr. Vance,” Curtis was active with Camp Tomahawk, the annual summer camp for underprivileged children), created the annual Vance-Enid Golf Tournament and worked on the annual Enlisted Appreciation Night.
In 2003 he was honored with an AFA Lifetime Achievement Award.
He died Sept. 7, 2005.
Ed Greven
Born in Luxembourg, Greven emigrated to the United States in 1949 and became a citizen in 1954.
He served in the Air Force from 1952 to 1956, serving as a flight engineer on B-25s. He was stationed at Vance during part of his Air Force career.
A member of the local Air Force Association chapter, he also served as chairman of the Military Affairs Committee of the Greater Enid Chamber of Commerce.
Greven was instrumental in establishment of the “bird watchers’ park” on South Cleveland, where local residents could watch planes take off and land at Vance (that area now is within the base perimeter). He also helped get the city of Enid to return a donated T-33 trainer static display to the base’s air park.
“It was a recognition of my service to Vance and it made me feel good,” Greven said of his selection as a Partner In the Sky. “It was a show of gratitude.”
Ken Slack
Slack, an Air Force veteran, was a member of the Air Force Association and the Greater Enid Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Committee.
Slack was part of the effort to replace the wooden, World War II-era barracks at Vance with new dormitory facilities. He also worked on the annual Enlisted Appreciation Night. Slack also helped found Camp Tomahawk.
In 1989 he was named an honorary Air Force chief master sergeant.
“I was extremely proud and pleased and honored to have that happen,” Slack said of receiving Partner In the Sky honors. “I am honored today just like I was then.”
He said the years he spent working with and for the airman at Vance were “some of the most enjoyable.
“I applaud the many people who have done so much since I quit, in their efforts to make the base one of the premier bases in the country. They have done a super job.”
Mike Cooper
The former Enid mayor now is military liaison for the city and is chairman of the Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commission.
Cooper was mayor of Enid in 1995 when Vance was placed on the list of bases targeted for closure by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission.
He helped lead the community-wide effort to convince the committee to remove Vance from the list, and has worked to upgrade Vance’s infrastructure since. Vance was not included on the 2005 BRAC list and, in fact, picked up an additional mission as a result of that BRAC round.
“It means a lot to be recognized,” Cooper said. “These are people that are truly involved in the city-base relationship that makes us second to none. It is the totality of the community-base effort that makes us what we are.”
Bill Shewey
The longtime local banker has been involved with the Air Force Association and serves as vice president of the governmental affairs committee.
He also serves as a member of the Air Education and Training Command Com-mander’s Group. Two members representing each community that is home to an AETC base are selected.
“It has been educational to be on this committee,” Shewey said. “We have gotten to do things that people in the Air Force would never get to do.”
As an example, last year the group toured not only the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., but also secretive Cheyenne Mountain, the Cold War era fortress that now serves as alternate command center for North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command.
Of his selection as a Partner In the Sky, Shewey said “It is a nice honor, it is a neat deal.”
Jon Blankenship
The president and chief executive officer of Greater Enid Chamber of Commerce annually takes a group of chamber members to Washington, D.C., to meet with Pentagon leaders as well as members of Oklahoma’s congressional delegation.
He said he doesn’t see his selection as a Partner In the Sky as an individual honor.
“I look at that recognition more for my role in the Enid chamber and the partnership the Enid chamber has had with Vance over the years,” he said.
The chamber sponsors Camp Tomahawk, the annual summer camp at Vance for underprivileged children, as well as the annual Enlisted Appreciation Night. The chamber also has been supportive in trying to secure funding for various projects on base and of interest to Vance.
“I think it (the Partner In the Sky selection) was recognition for what the Enid chamber has given over the years for the base,” Blankenship said. “That is a good list of people. I am proud to be on it.”
Ernie Currier
As mayor of Enid, Currier hired Cooper as a paid military liaison for the city.
He also spearheaded the Enid America Supports You campaign to show support for not only Vance, but also for all of the nation’s military personnel.
“I pushed for a lot that supported Vance and supported our troops, and to show that Enid was a place where we took that seriously,” Currier said.
Under Currier’s leadership, the city officially donated 132 acres of land to the Air Force. That land now is home to Vance’s new housing area.
While he was mayor, Currier also made the wing commander at Vance an honorary member of the Enid City Commission.
Currier currently is chairman of the Greater Enid Chamber of Commerce State Economic Development and Government Affairs Council. Part of that group’s mission is to seek Vance infrastructure assistance through the Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commission.
He was named a Partner In the Sky in 2007 by then wing commander Col. Richard Klumpp Jr. Currier soon will travel to San Antonio to watch as Klumpp receives his star as a brigadier general.
“My admiration for folks in the military is just immense,” Currier said. “For them to feel they want to bestow any honor on me is an emotional time for me.”
Mary Feightner
The newest member of the group received her honor in late May from then-Vance wing commander Col. Chris Nowland, who has since been promoted to brigadier general.
Feightner works on Enlisted Appreciation Night and has, since 2002, recruited local sponsors for Vance’s Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Train-ing classes. The class sponsorship program fosters involvement between members of the Enid community and Vance’s student pilots. She also works on behalf of Camp Tomahawk.
She is secretary of Enid Air Force Association Chapter 214 and was named Oklahoma Person of the Year at the 2005 state AFA convention. In 2007 she received a presidential citation at the national AFA convention. In 2004 she received the AFA Storz Award, the AFA’s highest civilian award.
“I do those things for the base because I enjoy doing them,” she said. “I enjoy helping the military. I know how hard it is to be away from home. I do what I can to make them feel more welcome in the Enid community.”
