For Throwback Thursday, Ty Oliver Taborn, a senior counsel with Career Communications Group, expressed his appreciation for the U.S. military, civil-military relations, and public service.
Using the hashtag 'Know your military,' Taborn encouraged greater awareness of military service.
He described his experience as a participant in Joint Civilian Orientation Conference Class 93, the Department of Defense's oldest and most prestigious public liaison program, established in 1948 by the Secretary of Defense.
According to Taborn's LinkedIn post, each class brings together a select group of CEOs, presidents, and community leaders from across the country for an immersive week with the U.S. military.
Taborn shared that during this week, he visited the Pentagon, Peterson and Schriever Space Force Bases in Colorado Springs, Fort Carson, Nellis Air Force Base near Las Vegas, Naval Special Warfare Group 1 at the Silver Strand in Coronado, San Diego Bay with the Coast Guard, and the parade deck at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.
He recounted sitting in cockpits, wearing plate carriers, riding in tactical vehicles at sunrise, traveling on the open rear ramp of a CH-47 Chinook over the desert, and flying on a V-22 Osprey.
Most importantly, Taborn noted, the group spent meaningful time with Sailors, Soldiers, Airmen, Guardians, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen, who explained their roles and responsibilities.
"What stuck wasn't the hardware. It was the people,” Taborn concluded. “The quiet professionalism, the depth of expertise, and the patience to teach civilians who'd wandered into their world for a few days. JCOC's stated mission is to send participants home better equipped to bridge the civilian-military gap. I'm still drawing on it."