PHOENIX - Leaning back in the chair behind his large wooden desk, Air Force Brig. Gen. Ulay Littleton looks relaxed as he finishes up his phone conversation and turns his attention to the task at hand.  On this Aug 3 morning, the task at hand will be one of the last for the General as commander of Task Force Arizona.

Since October 2006, Littleton has been the command and drive behind Operation Jump Start – Arizona.

“We’ve done one heck of a job in the past year bringing together all the Soldiers and Airmen needed to complete this mission,” said Littleton.

With nearly 400 miles of area to cover, Littleton realized immediately that help from outside Arizona was needed to meet the requirements of the Customs and Border Protection agency.

“We just couldn’t meet the mission with the resources we had available in Arizona,” he said.

Littleton and his staff, in conjunction with the National Guard Bureau, sent out the call and the responses began flooding in.

“We’ve had Soldiers and Airmen from 51 of the 54 states and territories represented in Arizona for this mission,” he said.

“And these Soldiers and Airmen have performed nothing short of heroically in this mission,” Littleton continued.

Littleton recounted the many stories of bravery and dedication to duty that has characterized the troops under his command noting, most recently, the story of a Soldier who rescued three individuals from drowning.

“Beyond our stated mission of entry identification teams, building tactical infrastructure and such, this has been a humanitarian mission,” Littleton said as he explained that not only do the troops on the border help in security, they often times find themselves rescuing individuals trapped in brutal surroundings.

“It’s just astounding to think that through it all, the Soldiers and Airmen out there never loose their compassion.”

While the Soldiers and Airmen under the command of Littleton performed their mission admirably, coordination of such a large undertaking hasn’t been without its share of challenges.

“The logistics of so many personnel – how to feed them, lodge them, and make sure they are properly taken care of has been one of the largest challenges my staff and I faced over the past year,” he said.

And of course, Littleton said, the challenge of bringing together two very different services.

“In my 34 years of service, I’ve only ever dealt with the Air Force,” said Littleton.

“Each of the services comes to the table with it own set of skills and abilities and leveraging them both into a cohesive team has been a challenge to my leadership,” he said.

Undeterred by the challenge, Littleton and his staff worked through the initial growing pains.

“We’ve definitely come together, side by side towards the common goal of accomplishing this mission and we will continue to work through any and all of the challenges that operating in a joint environment produce,” he said. “This has definitely been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career.”

For his service, Littleton was awarded the Arizona Distinguished Service medal by Arizona Adjutant General, Maj. Gen. David Rataczak. While he relinquishes command of day to day operations to Army Col. Robert Centner, Littleton promises he’ll never be too far away.

Said Littleton, “I’ll be around in an advisory status. I’ll never be too far away that I can’t help out however needed.”