403rd recruiters pitch for winning team

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Michael Duhe
  • 403rd Wing Public Affairs
Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. --  The way Senior Master Sgt. Neil Sherman sees it, he didn't choose recruiting - recruiting chose him.

Sherman, originally from Jones County, Miss., took the reins as senior recruiter for 403rd Recruiting Region in August. He explained that in 2005, after spending time both on active duty and as a Reservist, he was about to accept an ART position unrelated to recruiting.

"I was using the local active duty recruiting office near my hometown (to conduct official business)," said Sherman. "Eventually the recruiter began deferring to me when he had applicants in the chair and I would answer questions the young person would have. (Due to this) he thought I should be a recruiter."

The recruiter put him in touch with the senior recruiter for the 403rd Wing at Keesler AFB. Sherman and his wife, Shannon, met with the senior recruiter at the 403rd's recruiting office in Hattiesburg. After hearing what Air Force recruiting had to offer, Sherman and his wife "thought it was too good to be true," he said.

"I weighed my options and thought it would be a great opportunity," said Sherman, who has a total of 23 years of combined service in the Air Force. "And I could utilize my experience from active duty and as a Reservist to help people be a part of our team."

Sherman has served in a number of roles during his career as a recruiter, including assistant senior recruiter, line recruiter, lead recruiter, eastern squadron trainer, and in-service recruiter.

"I truly feel that what I've done over the past eight years is my legacy to the Air Force," he said.

With nationwide unemployment at levels not seen in decades, the current recruiting environment for the Air Force Reserve is "great," according to Sherman.

"We have lot of folks who want to be a part of our team, which is no surprise because everybody wants to be on the winning team," Sherman said."We have no shortage of qualified people who want to be a part of the 403rd Wing."

Some of the challenges 403rd recruiters deal with include increased Air Force Reserve in-strength numbers.

"AFRC has had some growing pains, and the 403rd Wing is no exception to that," said Sherman. "Right now, our biggest hurdle is getting positions from the wing because the wing is quite full and we're going to continue to grow through 2014.

"My team and I are here to help continue to establish the wing as a jewel of the Air Force Reserve Command."

Sherman said the best reason to be on the Gulf Coast is just what all the local area has to offer, but the wing itself. "This is what I like to call my home wing. The 403rd is home to me, the area is home to me, and I'm excited and ecstatic to be a part of it again."