TOP STORY > >Base telephone operators hang up after 28-plus years of service

by Senior Airman Steele C. G. Britton
19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

Little Rock Air Force Base will be saying good-bye to two 19th Communications Squadron employees after Air Mobility Command centralized base operator functions to Travis Air Force Base, Calif.

Many callers have become accustomed to the gentle voices of 19th CS switchboard Operators Seven and Four.

Lavernia Johnson, more affectionately known as “Nana”, is the person behind the voice of Operator Seven and has provided first-rate customer service for 36 years.

Gail Munn, a four-year U.S. Air Force veteran, is the voice of Operator Four, and has also provided outstanding support for the past 28 years.

“These ladies went above and beyond in providing a kind voice and telephone numbers to numerous callers,” said Capt. Frank
Theising, 19th CS Operations Flight commander.

These local operators have seen many changes over the years through different telephone systems.

“When I started as a telephone operator, we worked with the cord board which was interesting at the time because we thought we were high-tech then, but it’s very different from what we are using today,” said Mrs. Johnson.

In 1983, a new era for telephone operator service at Little Rock AFB was introduced when an electronic switching device committed to one call at a time was replaced with a high-speed digital switch. This upgrade brought call waiting, call forwarding, station speed calling and third-party conference calls to the base. It was the first digital switch installed in Arkansas and it transformed telephone operations to meet the demands of customers for the next three decades.

“It’s no secret these ladies were a human phonebook, able to recite telephone numbers as well as the location and directions to any building on base,” said Captain Theising. “Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Munn extended loving care to deployed members who desperately needed to contact a spouse or family member. Family emergencies were handled as if they were their own; they took great care to get the best connection for all parties involved.”

“I’ve always been a people-person which made the job so enjoyable and why I’ve stayed with it so long. Sometimes going the extra mile to connect a husband or wife that is deployed is all it takes. It was a good feeling knowing that you’ve connected people that are deployed and it was really nice when they came by and thanked us for helping them stay in contact with loved ones,” Mrs. Johnson said.

Mrs. Munn and Mrs. Johnson both agreed that at times they’ve taken on the role as a counselor when trying to connect distraught family members who wanted to reach a loved one on base. Even when a little amount of information is given, these customer service professionals took time to connect a caller who wanted to talk to ‘the guy who wears a green uniform and drives a red truck’.

“Being a military spouse, it was a good feeling to be able to connect those that are deployed so easily so that they can hear each other’s voices, compared to when we would just have mail to depend on. We would go months without hearing our spouse’s voices but it felt good for somebody else to be able to make the phone call and that we were able to help them do that,” said Mrs. Munn.

Wednesday, the telephone operators witnessed the next step forward as Little Rock calls began their transition to a single call center at Travis Air Force Base, Calif.

“As Team Little Rock finishes the final chapter for Little Rock AFB operators, we wish them well on the occasion of their retirement and are truly grateful for their time here as members of the 19th Communications Squadron, they truly will be missed,” said Captain Theising.