Page 17 - MidWeek - August 11 2021

17 MIDWEEK AUGUST 11, 2021
With the help of Guardian Capts. Cody Felipe and Tara Crouch, and 1st Lt. Justin Lee, the U.S. Space Force on Maui diligently provides strategic capability to the nation through telescoping and computing prowess.
The force is with Capt. Cody Felipe these days, and it shows.
Force, I thought it was good for me. It just made sense, be- cause my career so far revolved around space systems,” ex- plains Felipe, who started off at Vandenberg Air Force Base in Santa Barbara, California, where he performed space op- erations, before he eventually made his way to the Space and Missile Systems Center in Los Angeles.
love to use his time on Maui to “strengthen ties with the com- munity.”
Force Guardians and Valley Isle residents 1st Lt. Justin Lee and Capt. Tara Crouch, their mission is to protect U.S. and allied interests in space, and provide capabilities to the joint forces. Created in 2019, the United States Space Force was established within the De- partment of the Air Force.
The Pukalani native is among a group of officers assigned to the Air Force Re- search Laboratory’s Optical and Supercomputing Site on Maui. More importantly, he’s one of the pioneering mem- bers of the U.S. Department of Defense’s newest military ser- vice branch — the Space Force Guardians.
Now, he’s back home and ea- ger to see what life as a Guard- ian is all about.
One of three children born to Michael and Vangie Felipe, the 31-year-old serviceman comes from a family that has definite ties to the military. Most notably, he has uncles who have served in both the Navy and Army. However, he’s the only one to have joined the Air Force, and now the Space Force as well.
Lee, 28, is a research engi- neer from Pocatello, Idaho.
Being a Guardian on the Valley Isle represents a special homecoming for Felipe, who serves as the site’s installation and facilities chief.
“I’ m very excited to be part of the new force and being close to my family again for a little bit before my next assign- ment, wherever that may be,” he says, adding that he’ d also
His family has expressed support for his career choice.
“I lived there most of my life, but I ended up joining the Air Force, because while I was on a church mission in Portugal in the Azores, that’s where I had my first real Air Force experience and got to know a lot of the American Air
“When I heard of the oppor- tunity to go over to the Space
“They’re proud, they’re ex- cited, and they can’t wait to see what the future has in store,” he says.
For Felipe and fellow Space
SEE PAGE 24