Legal Hawks make their first squadron visit

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. E'Lysia A. Wray
  • 49th Wing Public Affairs
HOLLOMAN AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. --  With the Air Force talking about doing "less with less", The 49th Wing Legal Office has found a way to do more with less.

The legal office recently cut back the number of walk-in legal assistance appointments due to manning issues. The Legal Hawks Outreach Program was created to provide quality legal assistance to those who were having difficulty making it to the legal office.

The Legal Hawks made their first mobile visit to the 49th Materiel Maintenance Support Squadron on Dec. 4.

The team consisted of one attorney, Capt. Amanda Barreto, and two paralegals, Master Sgt. Bryan Hawk and Staff Sgt. Timothy Mefford.

"As a convenience to Holloman Air Force Base, we at the legal office want to reach out and provide services to Airmen who may not otherwise make it to the legal office during our hours due to their shift schedule or location on base," said Capt. Amanda Barreto, the 49th Wing legal assistance and preventive law chief or operations. "The program helps us meet the Airmen's legal needs, which are important to us."

The visits are not just convenient for the Airmen, but also easy to coordinate.

Tech. Sgt. Kelly Mayberry, the 49th MMSS readiness unit deployment manager, was the coordination point of contact for her squadron.

"I like making the process easier on them because they are already stressed," said Mayberry. "Having everyone come to one place makes the process easier and takes some of the stress off of them."

Senior Airman Geovanni Nunez, a 49th vehicle maintenance journeyman, was one of the Airmen that took advantage of the mobile legal team visiting the Basic Expeditionary Airfield Resources base.

"I really appreciate that they came to us," said Nunez. "I am new to Holloman and still not sure where everything is at. Their visit saved me a lot of time and didn't take away too much time from the workplace."

Both the Airmen who benefitted from the outreach program and the Airmen involved in making the visit a success are looking forward to the next squadron visit.

"We hope to continue this program, extending services to different squadrons, especially ones who have trouble making it to our office," said Barreto. "This program helps us meet the overall goal, fulfilling the legal needs of our Airmen.

If you are interested in scheduling a Legal Hawk Outreach Program visit or have any questions, please contact Master Sgt. Bryan Hawk at (575) 572-7217.