Music, memories, and a clear-eyed look at what’s ahead for Abilene and our Bulldogs.
The Performing Arts Center felt a little like a front porch this morning—warm, welcoming, and humming with gratitude. Wylie’s Jazz Band set the tone, the Choir lifted the room with patriotic melodies, and students shared heartfelt words before introducing our guest speaker: Maj. Gen. (Ret.) John Nichols, now Vice President of Military Affairs for the Abilene Chamber.
Gen. Nichols knows Wylie by heart—two of his children attended Wylie during his Dyess assignments in the 2000s—and he brought both pride and perspective. He shared how Dyess is actively projecting power around the globe with the B-1 and 317th Airlift Wing, while preparing for the B-21 Raider’s arrival. What does that mean here at home? Significant base improvements, new gates and roadway work, and a long-term population increase—an estimated 5,600 active-duty members and family—over the next 10–15 years. He also noted an eventual return of the nuclear mission to Dyess, calling for a community mindset of discretion and unity when operations are underway.
For Wylie families, he tied those big changes to everyday life: more neighbors in purple and gold, more partnerships with local industry, and more STEM opportunities. In fact, he celebrated a new Northrop Grumman STEM grant awarded to both Wylie ISD and Abilene ISD—an investment in the very students who filled the PAC with music today.
We are grateful to the community partners who made this brunch possible, including Dyess AFB Honor Guard, Jason’s Deli, Tea2Go, Statesman Coffee, Bogie’s Downtown Deli, Grain Theory, Cordell’s, Card My Yard, and OnTrack Nutrition. And to our teachers, art students (those poppy cards!), directors, and student crews—thank you for the care you poured into every detail.
