Delivery: Airman traverses the base with letters and parcels

by Staff Sgt. Maria Bowman
375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs

8/7/2014 - SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- With a brown package in hand, Airman 1st Class Victoria Moore walks through the doors of an office building. Walking toward the receptionist behind the desk, Moore's green eyes become brighter as she greets her with a wide smile.

Before handing the package to the recipient, Moore scans the barcode, which allows her office to track the parcel. Moore gently places the scanner into the receptionist's hands and waits for her to sign it and accept the box. Thanking her, she takes the hand-held machine and walks back to her large white truck and continues to the next location she needs to drop off mail.

Moore, a former military brat, works for the Official Mail Center and delivers mail to various organizations on base. This provides her with an opportunity to meet a variety of people and interact with them.

Moore said she joined the Air Force because her mother was in the military, and she really wanted to live that life. She raised her hand and swore to defend the United States in Spring 2013, after graduating from high school.

"My mom was prior service, and I saw how she interacted with her co-workers and the camaraderie they had," the Mascoutah High School graduate said. "I definitely like the patriotic side of the military and the way I feel when I put on the uniform--being that 1 percent that can actually make a difference. It's important because I'm held to a different standard and it betters me and makes me feel proud."

Moore begins her day by sending every piece of official mail, including packages, through an x-ray machine, where she checks for illegal items. Then she sorts the mail and places it into a bin. Accountable mail is scanned by a PDA before being added to the delivery pile.

After all the mail is ready, Moore puts the packages and bins on to a mail truck and drives to various organizations, dropping mail off and picking up anything that needs to be sent elsewhere. Moore takes the mail she picks up and runs it through a machine that stamps it with postage. Any undelivered mail is returned to the Post Office at the end of each day.

Tech. Sgt. Ernie Pangilinan, OFC NCOIC, said the mission they provide is valuable to the base and that Moore's support is truly instrumental in completing their goals.

"Our job is important because we provide efficient, economical and effective mail services to support Scott Air Force Base's mission of Enabling Rapid Global Mobility. Personnel serve on mail security screening, delivery services, routine outgoing, internal correspondence and official distribution management.

Without Moore's expertise, professionalism, and positive attitude our mission would be degraded."

Moore said she prefers working in a job that doesn't have her chained to a desk and where she has the freedom to be social.

"My favorite part about my job is getting out and meeting different people and seeing different faces," she said. "I'm a people person, so interaction is definitely fun. I like their personalities and attitudes. A lot of them have good advice. I put on a happy face for people and try to make them smile too."

Even though she doesn't want to do this job during her entire career, Moore believes this position is a good starting point for her military journey.

"I think my job makes a difference; we protect people, checking for bombs," she said. "We x-ray the packages and use an ion scanner to check for chemicals. We'll check the boxes, and if we hear ticking, we call that in."

When a suspicious package comes in, the OMC calls the 375th Security Forces Squadron. If the box contains a bomb, the building is evacuated. If it's a chemical problem, everyone within five feet of the package has to stay near it, while all other personnel are evacuated. The people who have to remain in the building could be contaminated by the substance, and biomedical engineering is required to clear them. If it is discovered that anyone has some of the chemical on them, they have to get decontaminated. The package is isolated and removed by security forces.

Moore said she wants to retire from the military and looks forward to the opportunity to try out different jobs in the future, including being a biomedical engineer.

"I definitely want to retire as a chief," she said. "I'm not 100 percent sure what I want to do yet. I want to be in a job where I can help somebody and make a difference. I want to do something that has an impact on people and makes me feel good about myself. I definitely want to cross train and do biomedical engineering. It sounds like a cool job that I would like to get into."

The military can change people in different ways, and Moore said it has helped her mature. She looks forward to being a supervisor and being a mentor to her peers.

"The military made me grow up quickly. You have to change your attitude and how you talk to people," she said. "Getting an education is important because it broadens your spectrum of being able to be knowledgeable. It is that extra stepping stone to make you the best of the best."

The mission of the OMC is to provide customers with the most cost effective, secure, and prompt methods of delivery and receipt of official communications.