In the fall of 2015 Peak Technical Institute (one of the training facilities that provide education for our industry) asked me to fill in as an adjunct instructor for their fall Enlisted Aides course for the United States Air Force as well as their household management course as an interim instructor. I was honored that they would consider me to be an instructor for these courses, and I gladly accepted the opportunity!
I have a great respect for the Enlisted Aides special duty career field in our Armed Forces. Throughout the Department of Defense, Enlisted Aides are assigned to serve in a General Officer’s residence to create and maintain an environment suitable for the general to conduct official business. This service provides the atmosphere for entertaining dignitaries and heads of state at the highest levels, to secure those opportunities which may better provide for the security of our nation. In this way, the Enlisted Aides provide a similar role in a military setting to what I provide my employers in a civilian setting.
As the students shared their experiences, I was inspired by their protocol stories they had been a part of, and I strived to create an environment that encouraged them to be ambassadors for etiquette in the military households they served. In the attached photos I am pictured teaching a wine lecture and the art of pouring wine at a dining table. The students loved this session as they could see their quick progress from before my instruction to after the hands-on practice session, in which they improved significantly in a short amount of time! They were eager to learn the correct approach to wine service as this skill would be graded on their final, as well as in a formal dinner service for guests which was also graded as part of the curriculum. The additional photos show the students cooking the meal with my instruction and a picture of our lovely table setting the night of the formal dinner service where they would practice their table service skills for a group of guests from the school.
Even though the instruction session was short, the experience moved me deeply as I could see their service having ripple effects for the good of our country for years to come! Each time I remember my time with the Enlisted Aide Program I am humbly reminded the lessons I taught were small in comparison to the excellent lessons the students revealed to me. If you would like Luxury Lifestyle Logistics to lead a training workshop for your estate management workplace, please contact us to schedule a complementary consultation.