An MTI for all seasons: Training changes, Chief Begley a constant

Published May 17, 2013
By Master Sgt. Brannen Parrish
931st Air Refueling Group Public Affairs

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND -- Every time Chief Master Sgt. Julie Begley led a squadron of freshly-minted Airmen across the parade ground here, the Air Force was forever changed. The service changed because it received men and women who had never been part of it and the Airmen were forever changed because they were becoming a part of something new.

When Begley led the 326th Training Squadron through their graduation parade, May 17, the Air Force gained more than 560 new Airmen but lost a military training instructor who was part of Basic Military Training in four different decades.

"I love it. I've loved every minute of it from the moment I became an MTI," said Begley, a Reservist who was on man day orders as the Superintendent of the 326th TRS. "I loved seeing the transition, that young lady or young man who gets off the bus and has no idea what they're getting ready to get themselves into, and the transition that occurs by the minute. You start seeing that confidence and that teamwork, and the esprit de corps, and they begin to feel that they are a part of something."

From the 1980s, with a couple of breaks in service in between, Begley trained and mentored Airmen and MTIs from the active duty, Reserve and Air National Guard components.

She brought to basic military training everything that the Total Force Initiative is supposed to be about. She was a Reservist who fit in exactly where she was needed, was passionate about her mission, and worked well with members from every component.

She loved the training, loved seeing the change in those being trained and she loved the atmosphere. While most NCOs, and even most Senior NCOs, rarely have an opportunity to manage 50 or more Airmen, managing a flight of 50 trainees is part of the MTI's job description.

"The good part of it is, they've got those other mentors around them, the other MTIs, the instructor supervisor who is there with them. The MTIs become family," said Begley. "I think that's another part about why I've loved everything. When you get into this and it is something that you know. It's like your blood turns blue."

Nineteen of Begley's 23 years of combined active duty and Reserve service were dedicated to training and mentoring new Airmen and MTIs at BMT. Her reputation transcends her.

"You learn quickly, if you spend any time at Lackland on the training-side that Chief Begley is a rock star of sorts. She's been around for a long time and she knows everybody," said Staff Sgt. Kenneth McGuane, an MTI and a Traditional Reservist from the 433rd Training Squadron who credits Begley with helping him become an MTI. "When I went into the MTI School, I was surrounded by active duty guys and gals, as a Reservist from the 433rd TRS, everyone at the school house knew that I belonged to Chief Begley. Having someone like her is a good way to bridge that gap between the active duty and Reserve side."

She witnessed the move from a six-week BMT schedule to an eight-week schedule. She was leading flights when the Air Force increased its emphasis on physical fitness and she saw changes in the approach MTIs take with trainees.

Begley adapted and kept training up future Airmen. While techniques and procedures can change, leadership traits and qualities, like professionalism is timeless.

"She comes from a totally different generation of MTIs where a lot of the stuff they were doing in the 90s and even in 2000s, a lot of that doesn't happen at BMT anymore," said McGuane. "The tendency would be for people to assume 'Oh, someone like that has been at BMT for that long their probably old school they're probably going to annihilate those trainees.' But you see her interact with trainees, and you can see that she's at a place where she can keep all of the theatrics in check. She can bring them out when she needs to but she doesn't have to."

Begley is slight of height but she doesn't make up for it with any other quality because she doesn't need to compensate for any other quality. She seems to have been made perfectly for what she does.

"You get the feeling that she believes in what she's doing in a way that feels like she actually believes that she's been called to do this," said McGuane. "She's a total professional to the very core and someone who is deeply, passionate about what BMT means, what an MTI means and what their role is toward the greater good."

Senior Master Sgt. Magdalena Cortez, Manager of Command Knowledge Operations Management Inspections at Air Force Material Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base was a trainee when she met an MTI who held the rank of buck sergeant.

"When she was our instructor, she was only a buck sergeant but I swear she carried herself like a chief, even then. Even though she was maybe five-foot, four inches, she was a dynamo and you definitely didn't want to set that small package off," said Cortez. "As her dorm chief, I hated to hear her call for me in that tone that told you something was up. I swear, I saw her grow a couple inches taller a few times."

About two years after graduating BMT, Cortez was assigned there as a member of the squadron's support staff. While walking into an awards ceremony, she saw a group of instructors and noticed something familiar about one of them.

"All of a sudden the flashbacks started happening and I knew why that instructor looked so familiar, it was Sergeant Begley," said Cortez. "I told myself, 'Just keep walking straight and don't make eye contact!' and then I heard it, 'Dorm chief!'"

Cortez hoped Begley was talking to someone else but her hopes were unrealized.

"She called me again, so I stopped, turned around and walked over to her, and stood there at attention just like I had in basic training. I didn't know if I should give her a reporting statement or what so I just said 'Yes, Ma'am?' and she just started laughing and told me to stand at ease and asked me how I was doing and how my career was going," said Cortez

When Cortez became an MTI ten years later, she said she wanted to benchmark from best practices.

"As soon as I walked into my first dormitory, I thought about basic training and my MTIs and knew I wanted to model how I trained after how I was trained," Cortez said.

As a rookie MTI, Cortez was processing a trainee flight through the mini-mall, where new trainees purchase towels, shower shoes and toiletries and other items. She saw Master Sgt. Begley speaking to her flight and she said her stomach tightened.

"All I'm thinking is 'They better give her a reporting statement!'" said Cortez. "I get over there lickity split, stand at attention and ask, 'Ma'am, is everything ok?' I was nervous about what she was going to say about my flight. She told me I was doing a good job with them, asked how I was doing, how I liked being an instructor, and she told me to let her know if I needed help with my flights. I thought about why I would stand at attention for her since I really didn't have to. Simply, it was because I respected her."

Those who do not know, Begley might think her reputation feeds into how people perceive her when they meet her. They would be wrong. The people who know her say even her name causes a reaction.

"It isn't necessarily what people have to say about Chief Begley. It's just sort of the way that they light up when you mention her name and the way they mention her in passing in very casual terms. You can just tell that everyone she comes into contact with, she just touches them. She really does. She just has this aura about her," said McGuane.

All Reserve instructors at BMT are assigned to the 433rd TRS. The 433rd is comprised of MTIs and support staff. The squadron is a component of Air Force Reserve Command and provides MTIs to line squadrons in need of additional manning. Begley served as the Air Education and Training Command MTI liaison for the 433rd Training Squadron. The 433rd reviews all applications for Reserve MTIs and Begley has played a role in the hiring of hundreds of Reserve MTIs during her career.

She said the applicant's motivation for wanting to be an MTI was always a deal-breaker when she was involved.

"We looked for quality factors. We were looking at their EPRs, we looked at the whole person concept, and most importantly, why they want to become an MTI," said Begley." We've turned people away who we felt wanted to do it for the wrong reasons. When they walked in and wanted to impact an Airman for the right reasons, that's 'money'."

The business of the training squadrons will continue. Training stops for no one, not even for the legends.

New men and women will arrive at the "Gateway to the Air Force" to take on the challenge of becoming Airmen. Some will successfully traverse the training schedule; others will struggle. Some may even quit on themselves, though MTIs like Begley would never quit on them.

New MTIs will show up and be influenced by the MTIs Begley trained. They will lead flights, and mold Airmen but the Air Force has lost a legend.

The day before she retired, Begley was asked if she would have a tear in her eye when she performed the final "eyes, right."

A professional to the end, she responded, "I'm sure there will be. I just hope it happens then, and not when I have to give the commands."