I Am the Mission: Mr. Chris Itzoe

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Rachel Underwood,
  • 175th Wing

Meet Mr. Christopher Itzoe, the maintenance chief and maintenance technician supervisor for the 175th Civil Engineer Squadron at Martin State Air National Guard Base, Middle River, Maryland. Itzoe has served in this capacity since Sept. 23, 2009.

As the working foreman over all of the facility maintenance staff, Itzoe is responsible for conducting preventative maintenance and repairing components of structures on base. Because of his knowledge of base-wide systems, he is also the point of contact during any large-scale contracted structural projects on base.

“Mr. Itzoe is an absolutely invaluable member of our state facilities team,” said Maj. Brian Vickers, 175th Civil Engineer Squadron staff officer. “From his many years of working in the 175th Civil Engineer Squadron, he has an unparalleled wealth of knowledge about every building and system on base. With an unwaveringly-positive attitude, Chris is always the first person to jump in and solve a problem.”

When the state enclave manager took another position within the Maryland Military Department, Itzoe stepped up to take on the role of supervisor. Since June 2022, Itzoe has supported the additional duty of supervising seven maintenance technicians.

“A lot of what we do here is to not only help maintain base readiness, but also make the base itself look good,” said Itzoe. “We cut the grass, plow the snow in the winter, and do maintenance on doors, roofs and windows.”

When Itzoe was 17, he wanted to join the military. Before he was able to officially sign up, he suffered a work injury that deemed him ineligible for military status. Years later, he’s now working at a military installation, alongside airmen and civilians.

According to Itzoe, he has made many lifelong friendships at Martin State Air National Guard Base.

“The best part of being here is all the great people I have the honor to work with, both on the civilian side and on the military side,” said Itzoe. “It’s nice to know that the work state employees do is appreciated and hopefully it’s a good part of helping the base complete its mission.”