TULSA, Okla. — The 138th Fighter Wing is moving forward with plans for a new $8 million airmen center that will consolidate mental, physical, spiritual, and social support services under one roof.
Wing Commander Col. Brad Ruttman said the facility represents a significant modernization effort for the Tulsa-based Air National Guard unit.
"Right now, all of the organizations that kind of take care of our airmen are spread out all over the base, and so this one facility will be a place where they can go to take care of all of those things," said Ruttman. "We're really proud of that."
The new 12,000-square-foot center aims to bring the 138th Fighter Wing's wellness capabilities in line with those at active-duty Air Force bases.
"Their facilities, as far as health and wellness go, are just far and above what we have here, but we're still held to the same physical standards, we still go do the same deployments that require the same mental health supports, and we just don't have that on this base as it sits right now," he said.
Bonnie Smith, who works with the care team, said they have been directly involved in developing the plan for the new center.
She said the facility will be designed as a trauma-informed space that considers service members' experiences.
"Our mission is to take care of airmen and support their resilience, their ability to stay connected and carry out the mission," Smith said. "So if we're all in the same facility, that makes our job a lot easier to connect the airmen to the services they most need.”
The project is being funded through a partnership between the State of Oklahoma, which is allocating $6 million, and the City of Tulsa, which is allocating $2 million. The Air National Guard expects the center to be completed before the end of 2027.
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