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Junior deployment 2017: Kids go downrange at Laughlin

Children participating in the junior deployment at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, Nov. 18, 2017, sit under a pavilion at the youth center after a four-hour morning exploring the base and learning the Laughlin mission. The junior deployment is held so military children are better able to understand what their military parent does on a day-to-day basis. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Anne McCready)

Maj. John Mallya, 47th Dental Flight commander, checks the children’s teeth before they go “downrange” at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, Nov. 18, 2017. As the final stretch of the deployment, the medical group informed the children about good teeth-cleaning habits. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Anne McCready)

Ryan Herrera dons child-sized fire protection gear with the help of his wingmen, Lee Rincones and Ronaldo Herrera during the junior deployment at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, Nov. 18, 2017. The firemen at Laughlin showed the young deployers how to unroll and spray a firehose, drag dummies to practice dragging a person from a fire and dress in fire safety gear. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Anne McCready)

Ryan Herrera gets camouflage painted on his face during the tour of the air traffic control tower at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, Nov. 18, 2017. Many Laughlin members volunteered to make the kids experiences as informative and fun as possible. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Anne McCready)

Lee Rincones observes the base through a pair of binoculars from the air traffic control tower at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, Nov. 18, 2017. According to Master Sgt. Nicholas Suppes, 47th Force Support Squadron readiness noncommissioned officer, the junior deployment was not only meant to be informative, but also something fun for the children. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Anne McCready)

Staff Sgt. Eric Carey, 47th Security Forces Squadron standardization equalization quality control leads a squad of “deployers” to the flightline at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, Nov. 18, 2017. The children learned how to form up, follow marching commands, and call cadence. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman Marco Gomez)

LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --

Children from Team XL and Del Rio fell into formation, Nov. 18, 2017 to inprocess before spending a morning in a mock deployment at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas.

The junior deployment, held by Laughlin, was designed to support Military Family Month and help young military family members and children in the community understand both the Laughlin and Air Force mission.

“The dependent children get an opportunity to get a taste of what their military family member does,” said Master Sgt. Nicholas Suppes, 47th Force Support Squadron readiness noncommissioned officer. “The kids who come from the schools may not know what we do out here, but this event allows them to see what the military is like.”

Many others, like Suppes, volunteered to make the event possible and enjoyable to the children.

“The kids look forward to junior deployment,” said Janet Johnson, 47th Force Support Squadron Airman and Family Readiness Center school liaison officer. “When my girls saw the flier they were really excited and wanted to go.”

The event offered numerous activities for the children who attended. Beginning at the comptroller squadron, they were separated into squads. The squads toured the base learning to march, spending time at the flightline to learn about Laughlin’s aircraft, gaining a bird’s eye view of the base from the air traffic control tower and more.

“Junior deployment not only focuses on having something fun to do at Laughlin, but it also focuses on military families,” Suppes said. “We need to make sure we don’t lose track of the importance of family—without the family, the mission fails.”