Thomas Dowell and his family
L to R: Jodie w/grandson Micah, Jason (son)
Destine, Zoya (grandkids)
Mary, Thomas
Thomas Dowell with his brothers
L to R, back row: Terry, Trent, Mike
L to R, front row: Tony, Tommy
Thomas Dowell with his siblings
L to R, back row: Terry, Mike, Ava, Tony, Trent
L to R, front row: Sherry, Tommy, Kay, Shelia, Stacey
story submitted by Brenda Dobbins
Thomas Melvin Dowell is the son of the late John Paul and Annie Mae Hurt Dowell. He was born on October 25, 1944, and is a 1965 graduate of Lincoln Heights High School, Wilkesboro, North Carolina.
Thomas enlisted in the United States Air Force on April 21, 1966. After completing Basic Training at the Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas in 1966, he was sent to Fort Port Hueneme, California, where he trained with the Navy Seabees. His next stop was RAF (Royal Air Force Base) Welford, England. In 1969, he was sent to Saigon, Vietnam. Then he was back stateside at Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts, and later at McConnell Air Force Base in Kansas. In 1976, he was stationed at San Vito Air Force Base in Brindisi, Italy.
In 1980, he was stationed at Hanson Air Force Base in Massachusetts as Chief of Production Control, working with the post engineers at NATO command. In this role, he was responsible for the land and air defense of Italy, Greece, and Turkey, as well as the defense of NATO sea lanes of communication throughout the Mediterranean and Black Seas.
He was promoted to Master Sergeant under the STEP program by direct selection. Sergeant Dowell of the Civil Engineering Squadron served as the in-service work programmer and scheduler for Hanscom. According to Major Eric Warman, chief of the operations branch, "Sergeant Dowell has demonstrated the most comprehensive functional knowledge of civil engineering operations and procedures ever exhibited by an individual of his rank and length of service. He has been the driving force behind a year-long effort to improve the in-service work plan."
Throughout the year, the sergeant executed a work plan to oversee the estimated indirect hours for 19 operations and maintenance cost centers. This data was vital in preparing the AF Form 919 (monthly In-Service Work Plan) to efficiently manage the 32,000 man-hour resources within the civil engineering organization.
“Sergeant Dowell’s plan is dynamic, and he continuously performed follow-up and quality assurance reviews to ensure that it remains flexible and workable.” Major Warman said. “Sergeant Dowell’s achievement clearly warranted an immediate promotion to Master Sergeant under the STEP program.”
In 1982, he served with the Allied Special Forces in Naples, Italy. In 1984, he was stationed at Shaw AFB in Sumter, South Carolina, and in 1985, he was deployed to Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany.
In 1990 Thomas was at Air Force Space Command at the Port Arthur Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado. He retired there on October 1, 1992.
Thomas spent 26 productive years in service to our country. However, he was not finished then, he worked at the Civil Government Command as Chief of Resources and received the Category II Civilian of the Year Award in 1996. He later retired after 44 years with the US Air Force and Civil Service.
Awards received include:
The Oak Leaf Cluster to the Meritorious Service Medal (represents the 6th time he has received this award)
Air Force Commendation Medal
National Defense Medal with Silver and Bronze Stars
Vietnam SVC Medal with Silver Star
Promotions: STEP (Stripes for Exceptional Performance Program) in 1983
Promoted to Master Sergeant
Thomas is married to Mary Gordon (née) of Newbury, England, and they have two sons: Zachary and Jason.