Moving to a new city – and having little if any knowledge of that city and what it has to offer—is nothing new for military members like 2 Lt. Megan Harter.

But repetitiveness doesn’t make the task any easier.

“One of the biggest stressors in moving as a military family is childcare, employment, and feeling welcomed in a place where you probably don’t have a support system.”

But after 10 months in Shreveport-Bossier and at Barksdale Air Force Base – her third city and base – 2 Lt. Harter, who is originally from Missouri, is more pleased than stressed.

“It’s been really positive for both me and my family. The local events and the local community – the seamless integration they have with the base – has really helped to make it feel more like home, and less like a temporary assignment.”

That “seamless integration” is just one of the reasons Shreveport-Bossier was recently named a 2026 Great American Defense Community by the Association of Defense Communities (ADC). The ADC and its almost 300 members is the connection point for leaders from communities, states, the military, and industry, on community-military issues and installation management.

“It’s a huge deal,” said Scott Ward, President and CEO of the Shreveport-Bossier Military Affairs Council. “There are a ton of communities that send in their paperwork to get nominated. They only picked three (Jacksonville, Florida and Greater Augusta, Georgia) out of however many dozens of folks applied for the award…It’s a monumental thing for our community. It’s a testament to what the Shreveport-Bossier community does and feels about our military men and women at Barksdale.”

Barksdale has almost 5,300 current active-duty members – the vast majority of them not from Shreveport-Bossier. Many will only be in our area a handful of years, if that many. But this designation signifies the importance Shreveport-Bossier places on making the members’ time in northwest Louisiana as enjoyable as possible.

“While they are here, we want them to feel respected, and welcomed like this is their home for a while,” said Eric Barkley, President and COO of Barksdale Forward. “However we can help them make their time here meaningful and enjoyable, we want to do that.”

Barksdale Forward is an organization with a mission of – among other things – advocating for the base’s continued growth and investment, as well as educating the public on Barksdale’s strategic importance.

“The strongest bases are made even stronger when they have the backing and total support that the community around them gives it,” Barkley said. “I believe we do a very good job of that in the Shreveport-Bossier area.”

Barksdale is home to Air Force Global Strike Command, the 8th Air Force, Joint Global Strike Operations Center, the 2nd Bomb Wing, and its Air Force reserve partner, the 307th Bomb Wing. However, no matter how entrenched the base is in Shreveport-Bossier, it’s not a given Barksdale will always be as strong a force in the area.

“We can’t take Barksdale for granted, and what it means to our community” Ward said. “Our community is much better with them than without them. We have to be all as a group lobbying for this base to stay vibrant and healthy.”

While this award was given for what Shreveport-Bossier does for Barksdale, Ward says it’s a two-way street.

“We get to benefit from those families being here. We get to benefit from them interacting with our community, our local churches, and our organizations. Their spouses are employed and help local businesses with a need, because we’re lacking in the Shreveport-Bossier community for good employees. They bring a ton of positive things to our community. They bring a sense of pride and a sense of safety over the Shreveport-Bossier and northwest Louisiana area that we couldn’t get otherwise.”

The Great American Defense Community designation is not a one-and-done honor, so don’t be surprised if you are reminded of the recognition for years to come.

“The designation is permanent”, Barkley said. “It is something the Shreveport-Bossier community will always have. We can put it on our water towers. We can have signs coming into town – signs in town…It comes with a very nice logo we could proudly display.”

Shreveport-Bossier, and Barksdale, is likely not the last stop on 2 Lt. Harter’s tour of duty. When the time comes for her to leave, she will take good memories with her.

“It’s been very positive. This community is so friendly and supportive of the military members.”