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WARREN -- Col. Jeffrey Van Dootingh, commander of the 910th Airlift Wing at the Youngstown Air Reserve Station in Vienna, was the keynote speaker on Friday at the 37th annual Civic Day sponsored by the Trumbull County Educational Service Center.
"Giving back is one of the most important things we do at the airbase. We try to give back to our communities because we could not do our mission without the support of them," Van Dootingh said.
Van Dootingh has more than 35 years of service in the Air Force, with more than 75,000 flying hours, and has participated in more than 420 combat flying hours in Panama, southwest Asia and the Balkans. He also participated in the first C-130 mission in northern Iraq at the onset of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
He now oversees about 2,000 Air Force Reserve and civilian professionals, providing training of personnel and overseeing deployment of the C-130 Hercules aircraft globally.
Civic Day was attended by more than 100 students and administrators from throughout the county at DiVieste's Banquet Center in Warren.
Throughout the day, students like Newton Falls senior Bryce Barnhart, 17, got a chance to shadow an assigned civic leader to gain a deeper understanding of the responsibilities associated with civic duties and their impact on communities.
The students were offered a chance to pair with a leader who aligned with their future interest.
Barnhart was paired with a mechanical engineer, spending the day at Girard Machine, where he said he toured a fabricating shop and employees talked to him and others about their daily responsibilities.
As president of the National Honor Society, Barnhart already has experience working with the community.
He participated in a backpack program that filled book bags with food and basic essentials to distribute to students in need. He also helped with the Newton Falls Commerce Association's Christmas in the Village, calling these efforts important to "bringing community together and bettering yourself as a person."
Van Dootingh encouraged students to find their role in the community and take advantage of programs that allow them to serve fellow residents, whether it be picking up trash along the road to getting involved in local politics.
"Whatever you have an interest in, I bet you can find a way to give back to the community related to that interest," Van Dootingh said. "You will get more out of it, the more you put into it, and it will be rewarding and something that you will remember for the rest of your life."
For those who can't find their role, Van Dootingh extended a personal invitation to students to help with tasks at the airbase.