128 Years of Family Serving Family: David Goguen, Army Son

One in a series honoring the Exchange’s 128 years of family serving family.

Who he is: David Goguen, main store manager, Hurlburt Field

Years with the Exchange: 22 years

Military connections: Both of his parents served in the Army. His father served seven years, while his mother retired as a staff sergeant after 20 years of service. “They met at AIT [Advanced Individual Training] at Fort Ord in California.” Goguen was born in Germany before moving to Fort Meade and, later, Joint Base San Antonio.

Exchange memories: “Saturdays always meant a commissary trip, and if I could get my parents to take me, a slice of pizza and a soda from Anthony’s Pizza at the Lackland AFB food court.”

What brought him to the Exchange: “I was 16, had just gotten my driver’s license and had to pay for insurance. A family friend, another military brat, was working at Anthony’s Pizza and had good things to say about it. Here I am 22 years later.”

What he did at first: Goguen began as a food service worker for Pretzelmania at the Lackland AFB Exchange.

Where he’s worked: Goguen spent about nine years in food service for different concepts at Lackland until he had the opportunity to join the Retail Management Training at Fort Sam Houston. His first duty station after that was Buckley AFB (now SFB) as a sales area manager, and then Thule AFB (now Pituffik Space Base) in Greenland as the assistant store manager. “It was an opportunity to do something different. It was an interesting assignment—those who have been understand. It’s a little different. I arrived in October on the last day of sunlight until March or April.”

Goguen then PCS’d to Fort Bliss, where he served as a sales area manager before being promoted to facility manager for the Class Six. He also spent time at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield before coming to Hurlburt Field in his current position last year.

Month of the Military Child—then and now: “My mom deployed to Saudi Arabia when I was a kid. I know how it is for some of these kids having mom or dad gone for a long time. A goodie bag or a picture with a Disney princess or a free cookie can mean a lot at that time, especially when they don’t really understand.

“I’m paying it forward, taking care of them the way the staff at Fort Meade and Lackland did for me.”

Memorable moments: “I was at Fort Bliss when my daughter was born. Having the support of the management team meant a lot. I was very thankful my team took care of business while I was gone. I didn’t have to worry. We had a visit [from senior leadership] while I was gone and when I got back, I got the feedback, ‘We didn’t even know you weren’t there” (in a good way!) because everything was taken care of.

“Another memorable moment was at Thule, when the sun comes back, they do a big First Light party. The whole base shuts down, and they have food and drinks and music and everyone has a big party.”

Best part of working for the Exchange: “The military has been a big part of my life. My parents met and married through the military. I was born on an installation. It’s something I’m used to. Being able to give back, as someone who has experienced it firsthand, is enjoyable.”

What “family serving family” means to him “Me. I’m the perfect example. I’m a military brat and now I’m serving these people who may not be blood-related, but they’re family.

“As associates, we also PCS and know the highs and lows of that. We know what it’s like to live out of a suitcase for a while, deal with finding housing, things like that.”