Commissary Sale at 185th

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Oscar Sanchez
  • 185ARW.PA
6-8-08 --  On June 7 and 8, 2008, the 185th Air Refueling Wing (ARW), Iowa Air National Guard, welcomed the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) who provides commissary benefits to National Guard and reserve members. Airman and families filed through the hangar doors at the 185th Air National Guard hangar in Sioux City for the case-lot sale, the first of its kind in the area.
Lori Risdal, Wings Family Programs Coordinator for the 185th ARW, said "I am pleased with the number of people shopping. I think this was a great success and hope to do it again in October."
"The 2004 National Defense Authorization Act authorized full commissary benefits for members of the Ready Reserve," Richard Page, acting Defense Commissary Agency director, said. "Through our new 'Bringing the Benefit to You' campaign, we are reaching out to our Guard and Reserve members who have earned the commissary benefit, but who cannot easily travel to a local commissary to shop on regular basis."
Laura Pearson of Nash, Finch Distribution is responsible for transporting all the merchandise to the base. "We brought three trucks of product and one truck of supplies like the shopping carts and freezers. This is our first off site sale and its going well, we even ran out of some products already."
The campaign involves conducting on-site sales out of warehouses, aircraft hangars, tents in parking lots at remote locations where reserve-component service members and their families do not have access to a commissary. More than 55 percent of reserve-component service members do not live in what is considered the immediate area of a commissary.
The 185th ARW fuel cell hangar was full of numerous commissary products. The most popular products being, paper products, Pampers, canned goods, and ninety-nine cent Frosted Flakes. First Sergeant Baker said, "There are great deals here compared to some of the regular stores. My daughters are also here to take advantage of the savings."
When asked if the sale was a success, Del Hoercher, Zone Manager for DeCA, said, "The success of the case-lot sale is the mother of ten children whose husband is in Iraq and can take advantage of the savings."

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