6th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
2/25/2013 - MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- More than 400 people rose and applauded as the 92-year-old American patriot was escorted in his wheel chair into the base theater, Feb. 13.
The highly decorated Airman, who is a living part of American and military history, started off standing on stage, but after some Airmen noticed he was having difficulties, they took it upon themselves to make the stage more comfortable for him by moving a chair and microphone into position for his convenience.
From his seat, Tuskegee Airman retired Tech. Sgt. George Watson proceeded to share almost a century of experiences, adversities he overcame and his outlook on life with Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and civilians for a Black History Month observance event.
Watson enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1942 and was stationed at Tuskegee, Ala. He became a part of something much greater then himself at the time-- the Army Air Corps program to teach African Americans to operate and maintain combat aircraft (something that had never been done before in the U.S.).
Watson spoke for nearly an hour and a half. He started off by saying he didn't want to talk about the negative experiences that he dealt with, but the positive outcome of those experiences.
"I don't dwell on the negatives too much; you learn from that," Watson said. "I learned that I have a lot of patience that I didn't think I had. I had a lot of negative things done to me, but we (Tuskegee Airmen) overcome those things."
When Watson entered the service, the checkout lines at the Post Exchange were labeled "Whites only" and "Colored's." He endured segregation, prejudices and hatred daily, but was committed to defending his country nevertheless. Watson's life is a lesson for Airmen on how to be resilient.
"It's amazing to me, how far we have come as a nation," said Tech. Sgt. Holly Garcia, 6th Medical Group, Optometry NCO in change. "To hear someone standing right in front of you recall memories of the ugly prejudices and miss treatment as if it were only yesterday, is crazy to me. I thought it was incredible to hear him tell his story. It truly goes to show if you set your mind and heart, you can achieve your dreams."
Watson attended the first class of African American pilots to graduate from Tuskegee. Thirteen African Americans were enrolled in the program, but only five graduated.
After dedicating 26 years to the military, serving in WWII (where he earned a purple heart), traveling to Italy, German, England, Turkey and Iran, Watson retired at McGuire Air Force Base, N.J.
Master Sgt. Laura Stanton, from the Joint Communications Squadron Element, has known Watson for seven years and was instrumental for arranging Watson's visit to MacDill AFB.
"I met him at McGuire AFB when I used to teach at the first-term Airmen center," said Stanton, JCSE Equal Opportunity liaison and a Black History Month committee member. "We needed a guest speaker and I thought who better than him?"
"He's just a great man. He's a legend; we are honored to have him here," said Stanton.
Watson shared his stories of how he steered through, overcame, reached out and bounced back from adversities in his life--a message that is very timely considering the challenges service members face in today's Air Force.
"I'm so proud of today's Airmen. We thought we were the best. We thought we knew everything, but seeing them, they are the best!" Watson said.
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