Lyons woman serves at Manas Air Base
By John B. Dendy IV
In the Kyrgyz Republic

Most people avoid living in a town where visitors regularly empty convenience store shelves, where table space at the only kitchen in town is frequently at a premium and guests must sleep in warehouses when tent space runs out.

But the daughter of a Lyons couple overcomes this chaos and more while serving her country at this isolated camp where waves of troops are accommodated like long-lost family when they show up for their connecting flights to and from deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Air Force Senior Airman Melissa L. Herman, daughter of Gene and Barb Herman, is on duty as a readiness journeyman at the air base that has become one of the busiest in the region.

Herman is a readiness journeyman on duty for four-to-six months straight at Manas Air Base in the Kyrgyz Republic. Thousands of troops and federal employees are flown through here to reach Iraq and Afghanistan. (Photo by Derrick Goode)

She is a 1999 Lyons High School graduate. She said, 'I inspect gas masks to ensure they are serviceable and working properly. I also instruct nuclear, biological and chemical warfare classes, and I am one of the people in charge of our program that helps the rest of the base be ready in the event of an attack or a natural disaster.'

Herman and fellow airmen help needy neighbors in a predominately Islamic surrounding community of more than one million people, a subject that hits close to Herman's heart.

'I'm a member of our community outreach group that helps the orphanages and visits the schools and the children with cancer,' Herman said. 'Our groups are also planning a carnival for children from local orphanages. I'm making bracelets that will be used as prizes, and I'm helping to build booths for the children when they visit.'

The air base can be a noisy and hectic place - the military's version of O'Hare Airport at rush hour, and she said both the pace and hardships can be hard to manage at times.

'I think a recent week proved how well this base works as a team. I remember standing in long lines at the dining facility, and seeing hundreds of cots put in at the gym, library and recreation center,' Herman recalls. 'At that time, all base activities were cancelled, yet everyone worked together and made the best of it.'

Service members are deployed here for four-to-six month stretches, but most say their brief stint is worth the effort. 'I train the entire base on how to protect themselves in a contaminated environment, so what I do is very important to our readiness,' she said.

Herman and other troops expect more soldiers to clear their grocery store shelves of candy bars, sending them by the plane-load. Even with thousands of soldiers flying in and out of Manas from Iraq and Afghanistan with their duffel bags this spring, Herman says there will always be a 'vacancy' sign, a welcome mat and a light left on.

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