FSS provides quality quarters for military members

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Micaiah Anthony
  • 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs
Each year, the Barksdale Inn services more than 75,000 visitors in eight different buildings with a total of 263 rooms. Regardless of where and why they come, many just want a nice place to stay and recover from their journey.

Lodging Airmen and civilians from the 2nd Force Support Squadron make sure all of Barksdale's visitors have a place to do just that.

"We are the first organization people usually see when they move to, or visit Barksdale," said Master Sgt. Victoria Monroe, 2 FSS lodging superintendent. "We make sure our personnel and our rooms set the tone for their first visit."

To guarantee visitors have a great first impression, the lodging staff works hard to maintain their golden standard.

"We do weekly, white-glove room inspections to ensure everything from cob webs in the corners, to the last piece of silverware is clean," said Monroe. "Our standards are higher than most off-base agencies, you are definitely going to have a great stay here."

The inn offers a variety of rooms specifically designed for visiting officers, enlisted members and distinguished guests.

"We also have a temporary lodging facility for Airmen with dependents," said Jonathan McClinton, 2 FSS lodging operations manager. "The rooms are spacious and come with cooking utensils. It is very similar to a small apartment."

The inn also offers a variety of amenities and services for its occupants.

"We offer full house keeping, mail and wake-up services," said McClinton. "We also have rooms for personnel travelling with their pets so they save money by not having to put their pets in a kennel."

Pets aren't the only family members 2 FSS accommodates. Recently, TLF saw an upgrade to their outdoor play area for children.

"The equipment at the play ground near the TLF was really old and outdated," said McClinton. "The wing funded a new playground for the kids and they love it."

Some of the inn's facilities are currently under renovation. Inns are receiving not only new furniture, but electrical wiring and plumbing too.

"A lot of the furnishings in the rooms are from the Air Combat Command's renovations," he said. "Now the Air Force is standardizing all of the rooms so they will look the same from base to base."

Though standardized rooms are an Air Force initiative, Airmen from the 2 FSS plan to keep the quality of quarters high for Team Barksdale.

"We can feed you, we can keep you in shape and if you have comfortable accommodations you can get a better night's sleep," said Monroe. "We're all tied together to support one another so you can be more physically and mentally fit to support the mission."