To the great citizens of Enid and northwest Oklahoma, I sincerely appreciate the wonderful support you have provided to me, my family and the men and women of Vance Air Force Base.

Unfortunately, my time serving as the vice wing commander has come to an end. I am moving to Randolph AFB, Texas, to assume command of the 12th Flying Training Wing. As I reflect on the last 20 months of service at Vance AFB, I am continually reminded of how much of an impact this community has had on my family and Vance personnel.

On a personal note, in just a short period of time, my family has grown deep roots in your community. The highlight of our assignment has been the privilege of meeting many great people from Enid. Our family has experienced a great sense of community and will treasure the memories for the rest of our lives. As temporary Oklahomans, we’ve gained a great respect for the patriotic people of Enid and Northwest Oklahoma. You’ve validated our belief in American values, reminded us faith in God is still flourishing in our country and maybe even created a yearning for wind and wheat! It will be tough to say farewell, but we are proud to have made so many lasting friendships with members of the community.

On a professional note, your support of our personnel serving at Vance is greater than I’ve ever experienced in my near 23 years of military service. Enid and Vance have a unique relationship founded on shared culture, values and patriotism. And, I’m proud to have been a small part of ensuring this relationship remained strong.

Enid’s culture of respect for military members’ service and sacrifices would be remarkable for some to witness outside your community. So often you go out of your way as individuals and as a community to take care of our uniformed personnel — from a simple “thank you” to sponsoring a student pilot class. Your great support seems second nature but really goes a long way in helping prepare our Airmen for their mission. Many of our student pilots will be on the frontlines fighting our nation’s enemies within months of graduating from Vance. Even closer to home, we usually have more than 50 men and women from Vance deployed around the world at any one time. Your appreciation for their service and offers to help their families in their absence raise their spirits and remind them of why they joined the greatest military in the world, despite the risks to their own lives.

On behalf of the entire Vance team — from active duty, reserve and civil service to contract partners — we are fortunate to serve our nation in this great community. Cathy, Madelyn, Matthew and I will miss our Oklahoma home.

Col. Richard Murphy