HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah — This month, the Team Hill Special Observance Council celebrated Women’s History Month. The WHM committee and Col. Jennifer Hammerstedt, 75th Air Base Wing commander, hosted a breakfast buffet here featuring guest speaker Andrea Williams, Big Sky Conference commissioner.
Women’s History Month wasn’t always a nationally recognized event. President Jimmy Carter first declared the week of March 8 as National Women’s History Week and six years later, the National Women’s History Project successfully petitioned to have the event recognized for the entire month.
Each year the theme of the event changes. This year’s theme, ‘Trailblazing Women in the Labor and Business Industry,’ is perfectly suited to Williams who is not only a powerhouse in her career field, but also the first African American female commissioner in NCAA Division 1. She serves on several committees including the NCAA Board of Governors, Sexual Assault Prevention Commission, National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Athletic Director of Year Selection Committee and the John McLendon Minority Scholarship Foundation.
During her speech here, Williams spoke of having determination, a positive attitude and valuing people in order to motivate them to work harder for your team. Her words “be intentional” and hold yourself and others accountable for their actions resonated with the audience. The piece of advice she closed with was “7 Seconds = 11 Impressions.” This means that during the first seven seconds of meeting someone, they have formed 11 impressions of you…make those seven seconds count!
Williams also has Air Force roots. Her father, retired Air Force Col. Henry Williams, was a Basic Military Training School commander at Lackland AFB, Texas; her sister, retired Air Force Col. Amanda Gladney, was a U.S. Air Force Academy basketball player and served as the 88th Air Base Wing commander at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
In April, the Team Hill Special Observance Council will observe Holocaust Remembrance Day with a Holocaust remembrance service and panel discussion April 25 at the Nate Mazer Chapel near the Hill Aerospace Museum from 9:30-11:30 a.m.
