"I intend to ask the Secretary of the Air Force to officially name the first C-17 the "Spirit of McGuire"  to honor those who have served at McGuire Air Force Base in the past, present and future," Saxton said to a round of applause. "Wherever that C-17 flies over the next three decades or more of its lifespan, people from around the world will know the mettle of the people from McGuire Air Force Base."

The event, held last night at McGuire AFB and hosted by the Burlington County Military Affairs Committee, featured presentations by the N.J. Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, Joint Veterans Alliance, the Reserve Officers Association, the N.J. Veterans Council, Burlington County Veterans Association, Fort Dix Retirees Council, the Doughboy Chapter of the Chief Warrant Officers Association and the Burlington County Freeholders, 

In attendance were base commander Brig. Gen. Rich Mentemeyer, Fort Dix commander Col. Jim Snyder, 21st Air Force commander Maj. Gen. George Williams and 514th Brig. Gen. Scott Nichols, 108th Air Refueling Wing commander Brigadier General Wallace F. Pickard Jr. and numerous retired officers including Maj. Gen. Rocco Negris and Maj. Gen. George Betor. Home Port Alliance Executive Director Admiral Thomas Siegenthaler, (Ret.) of the soon-to-open battleship New Jersey museum, also attended.

Speakers included Gen. Paul Glazar, Adjutant General for the New Jersey National Guard and Reserve and Col. Mike Warner (ret.), Deputy Commissioner for Military and Veterans Affairs in the State of New Jersey. Prominent elected leaders guests included Burlington County Freeholders Theresa Brown, Bill Haines and Jim Wujcik, County Clerk Phil Haines, and Mount Holly Mayor Gladys Danser, as well as numerous veteran leaders.

Saxton thanked the assemblage and promised to continue to work to bring the C-17 Globemasters to New Jersey in 2004. McGuire was named as the preferred site over Charleston AFB and Dover AFB in January. An environmental assessment is slated to be unveiled by year's end, completing the selection process. Saxton told the crowd that early indications from the assessment bode well for McGuire. As one of the senior members of the House Armed Services Committee, Saxton has made a strong case to bring the C-17s to McGuire, which is faced with losing its 17 aging C-141s. He ascended to the chairmanship of the Military Construction Subcommittee earlier this year. A C-17 mission that comes to McGuire brings with it an estimated $70 million in new construction, in addition to the $500 million in infrastructure the base and Fort Dix have seen over the past 10 years

"Every year, McGuire and Fort Dix pump a combined $650 million into the South Jersey economy," Saxton said. "McGuire employs 9,000 military and civilian workers, and another 3,000 workers are employed at Fort Dix. Keeping McGuire and Fort Dix open and healthy is important to New Jersey, as well as to our national defense."

Saxton also noted that Boeing, the manufacturer of the much-heralded plane, has offered to cut the price for its C-17s in order to keep its assembly lines running, increasing the likelihood that the Air Force will buy more of the airplanes.