New additions to Whiting Field

Bill Lawson and Linda Larrabee have stepped up to fill top openings at the NEX and Fleet and Family Support Center this spring.  Both bring a wealth of experience to their respective positions.

Lawson, who became the director of Fleet and Family Support Center on Mar. 3, looks forward to “learning the Navy culture,” since he spent thirty-two years in the Air Force, having retired in 1989. 

“With my Air Force background, it’s like a whole different world,” he said.

As director, Lawson is responsible for overseeing programs such as family counseling, family advocacy, transition assistance, and relocation.  In short, he’s ultimately in charge of everything that goes on in the center. 

Specifically, Lawson anticipates “getting information to families of Individual Augmentees” to be his biggest challenge.

However, Lawson should not be worried about the challenges that lie ahead, since he has been working in the family services field since his retirement from the Air Force.  This is the third center of which he has been director.  Lawson previously served at Hurlburt Field when he moved to Northwest Florida in 2006 after spending three years at Incirlik Air Base Turkey.

Larrabee, who reported aboard Mar. 10, has also spent a fair amount of time overseas.  She most recently held the position of Nexmart General Manager in La Maddalena, Italy.  Prior to that, Larrabee spent thirteen years in Millington, Tennessee working as both Buyer and Store Operations Manager before she was picked up for the Navy Exchange General Manager in Training Program in April 2005.

Prior to her career with Navy Exchange, Larrabee spent thirteen years in the “private sector” working for Nordstrom, Bullock’s Department Stores, and a division of Marshal Field.  Her experience as Buyer began in August 1987 at Field Support Office Oakland, California, and she also spent four years in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in the same position. 

Larrabee’s twenty-one years of experience with the Navy Exchange came in handy while she oversaw the closure of the La Maddalena store in January 2008, a lengthy process in which she learned team-building as well as ways to turn adverse situations into opportunities.

She plans to use these skills here at Whiting Field.  “This is a great team and I’m looking forward to pulling them together.  Where you have happy associates, you have happy customers,” said Larrabee, who anticipates space management to be her biggest challenge.

“Our goal is getting things in here that our customers want.  To do that, we have to figure out how to fit 10 lbs. of merchandise in a 5 lb. bag.”
A major part of the solution involves expanding the Whiting Pines Mini Mart, and doubling the size of and moving the Package Store.  This will leave space for seasonal goods like outdoor living, which are in high demand among retired customers.

Larrabee embraces this challenge because she’s proud of the uniqueness of each Navy Exchange.

“We’re not cookie cutter; every store is different.”