8 FW DFAC staff fuel the fight

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Colby L. Hardin
  • 8th Fighter Wing Public Affairs

Morning, noon, or night, the U.S service members and the Korean counterparts are always working hard inside the 8th Fighter Wing dining facility beyond the customer service hours.   

The hours might say that they’re only open during the meal hours, however they [WJDTUP8F1] are constantly prepping and cooking the food in order to feed the nearly 2,000 service members that come through every day.   

Serving that many people is no small task, and no one knows better than the man responsible for keeping everyone on the same page.  

 “The people that work here are hard at work,” said Tech Sgt. Alvester Johnson, DFAC manager. “We know working here makes for a lot of early mornings and late nights, and sometimes we don’t always get our weekends or holidays off, but we know that it’s just what we have to do to complete the mission.”   

These resilient members know that it takes almost non-stop work throughout the day and every day, and even then their routine can hit a few unexpected challenges during a shift. One of those challenges being the language barrier between the service members and some of the civilian employees.    

“We work in one of the most diverse shops on base,” Said Johnson. “Local employees make up about half of the staff here. It’s what makes our team special.”     

This special blend of team work is one of the team’s great values and supports another unique feature. The 8th Fighter Wing is in a remote location, there are limitations to what can be accomplished here, but their special blend results in a menu that you won’t find anywhere else.    

“We try to accommodate as many needs as we can,” added Johnson. “Some items just can’t be shipped here making it tough to make some meals. What we do have that sets us apart are the traditional Korean dishes made by our staff here. I think a lot of people really enjoy that.”   

If you wanted to see something in addition to these meals or you have questions for the service of the staff members, there are comment cards that can be filled out and will be read by the staff on duty.   

“I would prefer for people to leave their emails when filling out comment cards,” said Johnson. “It helps us give better, more personal answers to questions that might get asked. We appreciate it, and love the feedback we get about our service."