Cannon fulfills dream for local youth

USAF photo Capt. Micah Jones watches as Armin Kronback Jr. tries on flight gear during a guided tour of an AC-130 Spectre gunship Aug. 5 at Cannon.

Clovis resident 11-year-old Armin Kronback Jr. (AJ), and his father were treated to a tour of the 16th Special Operations Squadron and an AC-130H Spectre gunship Aug. 5 at Cannon Air Force Base.

In 2008, Kronback was diagnosed with leukemia, a condition he still fights today. Always optimistic, he said he has a positive outlook despite this disease. He appreciates the people he has met through his battle with cancer and the things he has been able to do because of it.

It is because of his experience with leukemia that he became a member of the Air Commando family here. This started after a chance meeting with Lt. Col. Kyle Gibson, 27th Special Operations Medical Support Squadron commander, at a Clovis fundraiser for the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

“AJ and his family were moving to Clovis and attended the event here,” said Yolanda Infante, 27 SOMDSS secretary. “AJ was a good kid, happy and active.”

“Lt. Col. Gibson brought back information about AJ and the 27 SOMDSS decided to adopt him as our squadron little brother,” said Infante. “We wanted to make sure that their transition to Clovis was with ease and peace of mind.”

After hearing the Kronback family had already rented a house in Clovis and were due to move in within a couple days, the 27th SOMDSS set to work. They called for squadron volunteers to work on getting the house ready. When they began, they found out that the house was in rough shape, said Infante.

“We cleaned, painted the house, added furniture and groceries, and also did yard work,” said Infante. “When they (the Kronback family) got in, some volunteers were there to help them unload their truck and settle in.”

When moving to Clovis, it took the family six trips in 30 days, back and forth from Albuquerque. During this time they did their best to clean and repair the house, half of which was still unpainted.

“That last trip we were about as exhausted as we could get and were still facing the idea that we were going to have to unload the whole truck before being able to sleep,” said Kronback’s father.

“So when we pulled up and there were several people waiting to help unload, and then to see that people actually came together to clean, put lightbulbs in, paint, and fix every little thing; it was a humbling experience,” he said. “It was hard to keep tears from my eyes, that’s for sure.”

After getting to know the boy better, Infante found out that Kronback had an interest in and appreciation for the military, said Infante. Kronback wanted to see more of the military in action, so Infante got to work setting up a base tour.

During this tour Capt. Micah Jones, 16 SOS pilot, showed Kronback and his father around the squadron. He taught them about the gear pilots wear, took them on a tour of an AC-130H Spectre gunship, and later brought them to the flightline to watch the plane they had just toured take off.

While on the AC-130H Spectre gunship, Master Sgt. Jacob Manning, 16 SOS flight engineer, took Kronback up to the flight deck and showed him how to run the flight controls. Manning had Kronback do all of the preflight checks with him. Kronback also got to go in the back of the aircraft to look at all the guns and ammunition.

“It was an absolute blast!” said Jones of the tour. “You can tell that AJ is always thinking. One of the neat things about him is he asks questions that you would not expect somebody his age to ask and he seems very poised and knowledgeable. He doesn’t ask questions like, ‘what kind of plane is this?’ He already knows.”

“My favorite part was seeing the gunships,” said Kronback. “They were awesome! I also got to move around the controls, meet some of the staff, and got some cool souvenirs. It was a great day!”

When Kronback first went to the hospital in 2008, 98 percent of his blood cells had been affected by leukemia. Over the past three years Kronback has lost his hair three times because of the chemotherapy, had more than 25 spinal taps and bone marrow biopsies, and at one point weighed 49 pounds and had to have a gastric feeding tube inserted to feed him though his stomach.

However, the boy who showed up for the base tour had a full head of copper-red hair and looked physically healthy. The number of his cells affected by cancer is now between 20 and 30 percent. His family said that November will be the last of his chemotherapy treatments because of this improvement.

“My goal in the Air Force is to make a difference both downrange and in the community that hosts us,” said Gibson. “AJ gave us a great opportunity to give back to the Clovis community. Our squadron is hoping to help AJ and his family during his recovery from leukemia by lightening their load where we can, and giving them our support.”

To volunteer to help people like Kronback, contact Bill or Hazel Richter, members of the Make-a- Wish Foundation, at 575-309-9442 or 575-309-9834.