Fantastic First Friday Festivities

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Amber Ashcraft
  • 2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs
Every first Friday of the month, Airmen and their families gather at Hanger II here to enjoy food, music and esprit de corps.

The Airmen of the 2nd Force Support Squadron introduced the First Friday events to Team Barksdale at the beginning of 2011.

"We host large scale events, such as the Crawfish, Blues and Barbecue festivals quarterly, that are designed to bring the base community together," said Capt. Claudia Frost, 2 FSS. "But every first Friday is an event that also brings Airmen and their families together to celebrate the beginning of a new month here. Basically it's just another reason for us all to get together and build morale."

More than 400 Barksdale Team members attend First Friday festivities. It is up to the 2 FSS Airmen to make sure there's enough food for all.

"We tend to look for local businesses to cater our events," said Frost. "It bolsters our strong ties between the Barksdale and the Shreveport/Bossier communities. We take into consideration the businesses that are unique to our location, such as Shane's Seafood and Counter Culture, which have vended at previous First Friday events."

On Friday, Nov. 4, Pieworks provided specialty pizzas, wings and salads for the Barksdale Team.

"As the duty day ends at 4:30 p.m. for most agencies on base, Hangar II begins to fill-up with Airmen of all ranks and their families," said Frost. "First Friday isn't our only small event. We host karaoke every Friday and every Wednesday we have a Rib-eye Sizzle."

Since the previous Friday was a karaoke night, the commander of the 2nd Bomb Wing voted to introduce his singing debut of Bonnie Tyler's song, "Total Eclipse of the Heart."

"First Friday last week was a huge success," said Col. John Vitacca, 2nd Operations Group commander. "We appreciate everyone coming out for the camaraderie and their support during the auction of Col. Timothy Fay's wonderful singing."

Hangar II is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 4 to 9 p.m. For more information about Hangar II or other 2 FSS events, visit www.barksdaleservices.com or contact the Barksdale Club at 456-4926.