SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill — “Raise your right and hand and repeat after me ,” following that statement and 72 other words, one Airman on Scott was able to change his life and become part of a legacy that his family started generations before him.
Following that statement six years ago, a security forces Airman here become part of a family legacy that started generations before him.
Staff Sgt. Brambila, 375th Security Forces Squadron training instructor, said he always wanted a life dedicated to law enforcement, and the Air Force was his way of achieving that dream while serving his country.
Brambila is a second generation law enforcement member—having uncles serving in corrections, local police departments and border patrol. In addition, his father is a parole agent and his mother performs administrative work for the U.S. Marshall’s office.
“If I could do law enforcement and get out of my small town of Imperial, California, it would be a win-win, so I ended up joining the Air Force,” said Brambila. “I chose the Air Force because I liked security forces as opposed to military police in other branches.”
Brambila’s first base was in South Korea, and then he arrived at Scott.
“At Scott, I teach basic duties such as security, law enforcement, and expeditionary skills,” he said. “The duties also include administration, domestic response exercises and active shooter training to name a few… so it’s a broad range of work that I do.”
Brambila said his family has had a big impact on what he does on a daily basis.
“I build [scenarios] off of other people and their experience. Sometimes I’ll reach back to my family in law enforcement and ask questions about what they have seen or why people hide certain things,” he said. “I’ll ask for help so I can build up a better picture and see what these guys have seen so I can incorporate it into training.”
He said he had the opportunity to witness his dad put on the uniform and go to work every day, but he didn’t truly know what it meant to serve until he put on the uniform.
“My dad would talk about it a lot, but I didn’t find my love for my job until I actually did it,” he said. “I was fortunate enough to fall in love with it—taking care of my guys, taking care of people, community policing and just letting people know we are here for them.”
Brambila said he feels the same pride his family does when he wears the uniform. He hopes to influence his troops the same way his family has for him.
“I feel proud to put on the uniform of course, but it’s also when I take it off and reflect that I feel a certain way,” said Brambila. “I just want to be able to make enough of a difference so my team can make their own positive impact and come home at the end of every shift.”
