Green Dot: Don’t be a hero, make small choices

Published Aug. 15, 2016
By Staff Sgt. Katrina Heikkinen
434th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- Consequences are the outcome of every small decision – regardless of how minor and seemingly irrelevant they may be. Making even the smallest of choices with little risk can have lifelong consequences – and that was the message Airmen took to heart recently.

Nearly 100 Airmen attended mandatory Green Dot training during a unit training assembly as part of five-year strategy to decrease interpersonal violence across the total Air Force Aug. 7-8 at Grissom Air Reserve Base, Indiana.

“The purpose of Green Dot is to create culture change in the Air Force,” said Senior Airman Mary Costello, 434th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron administration apprentice and Green Dot implementer. “Culture change is a big word and people often shut down when they hear it. But ‘Green Dots’ are simply small choices.”

The Green Dot approach to sexual and domestic violence prevention is twofold: while it seeks to educate intolerance of violence as a standard, it also offers strategies and methods to overcome barriers in the event of intervention.

“[We teach] reactive choices you can make when you are up against a concerning behavior,” said Juanita Withrow, 434th Air Refueling Wing drug demand reduction specialist and Green Dot implementer/coordinator. “If you are hitting a barrier, we provide strategies to diffuse situations through directing, delegating and/or distracting.”

According to Costello, green dots represent methods of intervention in the act of interpersonal violence.

“I came into [green dot] not thinking it was going to be effective; thinking this was just another SAPR program,” Costello said. “But I left the initial training feeling revived. I’ve worked at a women’s shelter in Chicago, and I’ve worked for domestic violence court watching programs and I’ve been through multiple domestic violence workshops.

“But every time I’ve taken a workshop, I’ve left thinking ‘this is really unrealistic’ because they focus on zero tolerance and immediately doing something extremely direct,” she added. “What I like about green dot is we try to give you tools that work with you; we don’t need you to be a hero, we don’t need you to change, and I think that’s the beauty of green dot.”

Green Dot differs from traditional [Air Force] bystander intervention training in that instead of only focusing on high-risk situations, it provides scenarios, tools and strategies to deploy in the perpetration of all forms of power-based interpersonal violence, to include sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, stalking, child abuse, elder abuse and bullying.

“I've had Green Dot training, and you are probably rolling your eyes at having to participate in another training program,” said Col. Larry Shaw, 434th ARW commander. “We live in a turbulent time today and we need good citizens, good Airmen. Please take Green Dot training seriously; Green Dot is simply taking care of your folks and good Wingmanship.”

Green Dot training is offered every unit training assembly, alternate training assemblies and periodically throughout the month. All Grissom Airmen are required to complete initial Green Dot training no later than December 31. For more information or to sign up for the training, contact Withrow.

The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command. Men and women from the Hoosier Wing routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission.

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Green Dot: Don’t be a hero, make small choices

Green Dot: Don’t be a hero, make small choices

Green Dot: Don’t be a hero, make small choices

Green Dot: Don’t be a hero, make small choices

Public Affairs Staff