The Leadership Lowndes class of 2024 joined Team Moody for Defense Day at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, March 21, 2024.

Leadership Lowndes is a one-year program aimed at familiarizing leaders with community strengths and weaknesses to develop long-term solutions in the local area.

Throughout the year, the class participates in several engagements designed to connect leaders and educate them on the challenges they strive to overcome. One of the major engagements in the program is the mission-oriented tour at Moody AFB. The full-day program provided a closer look at the heritage and inner workings of the base, strengthening the ties between Airmen and local community.

“Defense Day is a chance for our class members to see ‘behind the curtain’ and witness the plethora of ways Moody Air Force Base makes our community better,” said Jason Van Nus, Lowndes County Schools Work-Based Learning and Youth Apprenticeship Programs director. “The awareness and points of advocacy our class members gain from Defense Day are the most premiere value to our organization.

Since 1989, Leadership Lowndes has graduated almost 900 leaders and spent thousands of services hours improving the county and developing lasting relationships between the base and local leaders.

During Defense Day, more than 30 Leadership Lowndes classmates explored the base, learning about the attack, rescue, and base defense missions. They received first-hand experience with the aircraft simulators and spent time interacting with Airmen, getting to know their perspective about the local community.

“One word that kept coming up was that everyone has a mission,” said Justin Purvis, Leadership Lowndes president. “That’s something we can take back. We all have a mission. As community members, we have a duty to take care of this place.”

Through the efforts made by groups like Leadership Lowndes, the local community continues to be supportive and welcoming of the military personnel and their families.

“We are grateful for such a dynamic and robust partnership with Moody Air Force Base and look forward to developing and growing this partnership stronger in the years to come,” Van Nus said.