Sheppard welcomes Hartwell as new wing chaplain

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Valerie Hosea
  • 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs
SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Chap. (Col.) Richard Hartwell said Aug. 13 that he hopes to offer Airmen in Training, permanent party members and the families of Sheppard the best spiritual support and encouragement possible during his time as wing chaplain. 

Chaplain Hartwell, 82nd Training Wing's new chaplain, was last assigned to the Headquarters of the Pacific Air Force at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii where he was the command chaplain. 

Chaplain Hartwell said that while working as the command chaplain for PACAF was demanding, he feels that he faces his hardest test yet, here at Sheppard. 

"I had been a major command chaplain for seven years and have to relearn how to be a wing chaplain. There have been so many changes in the way we do things and in the Airmen. My biggest challenge is getting up to speed on it all," he said. 

On top of his personal transition, he still has his day-to-day challenges that wing chaplains face such as managing multi-religious organizations. 

"The key to serving in a pluralistic environment is respect. You should respect people of all faiths. I'm a Christian chaplain and I wear the cross on my uniform but I treat everyone with respect, it doesn't matter if they're Buddhist, Roman Catholic or any other affiliation," Chaplain Hartwell said. 

Another complexity chaplains have is maintaining a balance in different activities that meet the needs of all religions. 

"Paying attention to details is most important there. I try to survey when special holidays are coming up and I keep my eyes open. For example, Ramadan is coming up next week. It's always good to have a general religious background familiarity," the chaplain said. 

He also said that as the wing chaplain, he encourages people to say what they need and that his door is always open. 

Chaplain Hartwell said that throughout his 28 years in the Air Force he has developed a deep appreciation for the work of chaplain teams, especially the ones assigned to PACAF. 

"PACAF is such a huge arena covering many miles and many people. That made it extremely difficult for any chaplain. I've achieved such a deep appreciation for work of chaplain teams in a wide variety of demanding environments," he said. 

He used his time in Tokyo as an example of what difficulties arose at certain locations. 

"It's hard supporting Airmen in the midst of the congestion of Tokyo. Everyone is so busy with practically no open space. But I saw chaplains that got the mission done, not only there but in places like Guam and Alaska, too," the chaplain said.