Seasoned leader set to command support group

Published April 12, 2013
By Senior Airman Jami K. Lancette
434th ARW Public Affairs

GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind. -- As warm weather rolls in and seasons change, so too will Grissom as it welcomes a new 434th Mission Support Group commander.

Col. William Stephens takes command of the 434th MSG here June 2, bringing with him knowledge, experience and a servant's heart.

"You have to be a public servant and you have to know and understand what it takes to lead," said Stephens. "You have to be open and to listen to what the members of a unit are saying as well as be open to change and be flexible."

In his new role, Stephens will be responsible for supporting the mission of the 434th Air Refueling Wing, the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command, through a variety of functions including infrastructure, services, logistics, personnel, communications, contracting and security.

The colonel received his commission from Officer Training School after graduating from Arizona State University. He is a navigator and has held a variety of operational, command and staff positions at the squadron, wing and major command levels.

After serving in the regular Air Force he became a law enforcement officer serving as a Riverside County, Calif., deputy sheriff and as a U.S. Customs special agent. Simultaneously, he joined the Air Force Reserve in March 1987.

Stephens has served in a variety of leadership roles in numerous environments giving him the experience and qualification to take the reins of the support group.

His command assignments include leading the 512th Mission Support Group at Dover Air Force Base, Del.; the 910th Mission Support Group at Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio; and most recently the 315th Mission Support Group, Charleston AFB, S.C .

In his current role with the 315th MSG, he is responsible for the organization, training and equipping of the groups more than 650 members.

On top of serving in multiple command assignments, Stephens also deployed to Southwest Asia in 2010 as a senior air reserve component advisor.

He said with experience comes an understanding of how to lead.

"I should be fairly consistent and stable with my decisions and be reasonable," he elaborated. "I will follow the regulations and guidelines to execute our mission, and I will deal with exceptions as they come on a case by case basis."

With his June arrival date approaching, Stephens said he is looking forward to hitting the ground running with his sights set on mission accomplishment.

"I'm looking forward to the opportunity," said Stephens. "I actually started out as a KC-135 navigator, so I'm getting back to it, and I'm just looking forward to getting there and getting involved with the mission and what Grissom has to offer."

The 434th MSG is one of three group-level units in the 434th ARW. Airmen routinely deploy from the 434th ARW in support of the Air Force mission and U.S. strategic objectives.

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Seasoned leader set to command support group

Seasoned leader set to command support group

Public Affairs Staff