AAFES provides mini shoppette for 554th RHS at Northwest Field Published Dec. 8, 2008 By Staff Sgt. Jamie Lessard 36th Wing Public Affairs ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam -- "We go where you go." That's Army Air Force Exchange Service's motto and they are staying true to that by providing a "mini shoppette" for 554th RED HORSE Squadron Airmen working at Northwest Field. It started as a request from Master Sgt. Wesley Willand, 554th RHS first sergeant, to put a shoppette at NWF. According to Sergeant Willand, Airmen pointed out that aside from driving to a local market for food and beverages and taking at least a half an hour out of the duty day, there was nothing available to them between meals. Knowing AAFES couldn't create an operation like that over night, Flordeliza Payton, Guam Exchange general manager, pulled her team together to create a way to provide the Airmen with a "mini shoppette." "We came up with the idea to drive a van out to NWF three days a week and set up a table with snacks and drinks etc," Ms. Payton said. Lourie Parker and Hillary Menard, shopette employees, alternate meeting the Airmen at 8:30 a.m. after the squadron's roll call. The AAFES employees open shop on their days off with whatever they can pack in coolers and boxes. While at the site, they often take requests for their next visit. "It's a great feeling to know you're supporting them and their mission, you can tell they're really grateful; that makes it worth it," Ms. Parker said. According to Ms. Payton, Pacific Air Forces is working with Col. Mark Talley, 36th Mission Support Group commander, on providing a mobile field exchange to NWF. It will take two to three months before a MFE will get to Guam, but it would provide the Airmen with a larger variety of products to choose from. "The AAFES/RED HORSE partnership is a huge incentive, and that incentive is key to us accomplishing the mission, the development of NWF," Sergeant Willand said.