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Reservist earns award for Get 1 Now Program

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Robert Pilch
  • 315th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. --  "Birds of a feather tend to flock together" sounds like an old cliché, but it holds true when referring prospective servicemembers to a recruiter in order to build a strong and viable Air Force Reserve. It also helps to be rewarded for one's efforts.

Just ask Senior Airman Allancia Sorhaindo, a military pay technician with the 315th Airlift Wing here, who recently earned first place in the Get 1 Now referral program sponsored by the Air Force Reserve Command.

Airman Sorhaindo has been so successful at her referral efforts that she managed to recruit her older sister and, most recently, her godbrother "into the blue."

"He was coming to visit me in Charleston and as soon as he got off the plane, I took him to the recruiter's office," said Sorhaindo of her brother's leisure trip to the Lowcountry.

Initially, he was thinking of joining the Marines, said Sorhaindo, but she convinced him the Air Force was the better option.

Airman Sorhaindo has reaped the rewards with the Get 1 Now Program, allowing her to take home items such as two iPod nanos, an iPod touch, two digital cameras, a 19" flat-screen television and several other gadgets that she enjoys when not convincing others to join the Air Force Reserve.

Airman Sorhaindo was credited with five accessions in 2009 and nine in 2010, which lead to her awards and praise from AFRC.

"My goal is to double up each year," said Sorhaindo. "I need my laptop."

A laptop is the top award for reservists who refer ten or more accessions within a fiscal year.

Although the awards are a nice tangible reminder of her efforts, Airman Sorhaindo expresses a deep passion for the Air Force and relishes in seeing the end result of her hard work.

"The best part of seeing people enlist is seeing how they are before and how they are when they come out," said Sorhaindo. "I like making a difference in someone's life."

She is currently mentoring a student at Wando High School, located in Mt. Pleasant, S.C., who is enrolled in the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps and is planning to attend the U.S. Air Force Academy upon graduation.

The dedication that Airman Sorhaindo and others have provided to the Get 1 Now Program is evident in the numbers as well.

"Charleston had 334 accessions for fiscal year 2009, 43 of them were from the Get 1 Now Program," said Senior Master Sgt. Valerie James, Senior reserve recruiter with the 315 AW. "That was our second highest lead source."

Airman Sorhaindo was also responsible for encouraging Sergeant James' daughter to enlist.

"She is very motivated and gets them over that edge," said Sergeant James.

Some may call it a family affair, but for one reservist here it is a mission.

The Get 1 Now Program is an incentive opportunity for reservists to refer potential candidates, with whom they wish to serve. Once the referral becomes an accession, the referring servicemember becomes eligible for an award.

For more information on the Get 1 Now Program, go online to www.get1now.us or contact Senior Master Sgt. Valerie James via email at valerie.james@us.af.mil or by calling (803) 979-4844.