Nimitz News Daily Digest - Aug. 18, 2012

August 18, 2012

Vol. 1 Issue 55

USS Nimitz Hosts Safety Stand-down Story and photo by MC3 Derek Volland

The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) is sponsoring a safety stand-down, which started Aug. 17 and will continue through today. The safety stand-down is being held in hangar bay two from 8:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.

“The suicide prevention is probably the most beneficial exhibit here in my opinion,” said Interior Communications See SAFETY Page 4

Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class (SW) Eduardo Bello educates Sailors about suicide prevention awareness at a safety stand-down aboard USS Nimitz (CVN 68) Aug. 17.

Opportunity For Sailors to Earn Education Story and photo by MCSN Jess Lewis

When wandering about the ship and making conversation with other Sailors, it’s often learned that many join the military for the education opportunities but don’t know how to take advantage of those benefits.

Even with the good intention of completing their education, before they realize it, their enlistment is up and they’re on their way out of the military without a degree in hand.

Now they’re forced to tap into their G.I. Bill and spend another three to four years going to college before they hit the “real world” and get a job doing whatever it is they planned to do once they got out of the military.

Ship commands with the Navy College Program for Afloat College Education (NCPACE) program offers Sailors a unique opportunity to complete their college classes while still out to sea.

“NCPACE is a funding and delivery program,” said Carlton Blaisdell, a NCPACE representative.

“The command sets up and administers the classes based on the ship’s schedule and flexibility.

The Navy pays for the course and the Sailor doesn’t have to use their tuition assistance (TA) or G.I. bill but can still take advantage of what’s educationally available to them.”

Once the ship is on deployment, NCPACE instructors will embark to teach the classes Sailors choose to take. Sailors can also opt for distance learning, or self-paced classes. Either See NCPACE Page 6

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Do You Need Better

NUTRITION Nutrition Classes August 18 & 19 1st Class Mess @ 0900

Nimitz Recognizes Sailor of the Day Story and photos by MC3 Devin Wray

Commanding Officer CAPT Jeff S. Ruth Executive Officer CAPT Buzz Donnelly Command Master Chief CMDCM Teri McIntyre Public Affairs Officer LCDR Karin Burzynski Editor MC3 Ryan Mayes Lead Designer MC3 Renee L. Candelario

Nimitz News accepts submissions in writing. All submissions are subject to review and screening.

“Nimitz News” is an authorized publication for the members of the military services and their families. Its content does not necessarily reflect the official views of the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy, or the Marine Corps and does not imply endorsement thereby.

Engineman Fireman Apprentice Harvey Sears, a Maintenance Technician for Reactor Department’s Auxiliaries Division was named the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz’ (CVN 68) Sailor of the Day, Aug. 17. Sears is responsible for ensuring the proper operation of emergency diesel enCapt. Jeff Ruth, commanding officer of USS Nimitz (CVN 68) gines aboard the ship. Since arriving named Engineman Fireman Apprentice Harvey Sears Sailor of to the ship in November 2011, Sears the Day, Aug. 17 in the Pilot House. has obtained his required in-rate Sears joined the Navy June 2011 to see qualifications took his enlisted surface warfare specialist (ESWS) oral board the world.

In his spare time, Sears can be found last night. He conducted more than 40 playing “Pathfinder” with his friends on maintenance checks on four emergency diesel engines ensuring emergency power the mess decks, reading, or playing video to vital equipment throughout the ship, games. He said he likes to write and would and as the Special Tools Petty Officer, as- like to be a novelist or a history teacher sisted in the completion of two TYCOM some day. His favorite time period is the Italian Renaissance.

Diesel Inspections.

“I certainly didn’t expect this when I “You can do one exceptional thing to woke up this morning,” said Sears, “but I get Sailor of the Day, or you can do your certainly appreciate it.” job, and do it well,” said Sears.

Engineman Fireman Apprentice Harvey Sears poses for a photo in an emergency diesel engine room.

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Come and Support Your Shipmates!

JEA HOSTS

Alcohol Awareness Run 5K Run on the Flight Deck Aug. 19 @ 0900 Navy PT Gear Required

Farewell, Coach

Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 1st Class Cameron Fisher and Sailors assigned to Air Department’s V-1 division congratulate Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) Erik K. Liskey, flight deck chief of V-1 division, on his last fly day aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) Aug. 15.

(US Navy photo by MC3 Jonathan Colon) Page 3

SAFETY: Helpful Information For Sailors Continued from Page 1

Electrician 3rd Class Tiffany Evans, an attending Sailor. “I think it’s good to know how to help others when they’re feeling so down. Not everyone is able to help themselves and they need someone there for them.”

The safety stand-down covers a number of topics including Traffic Safety, Gas Free Awareness, Health Stress Management, Suicide Prevention and Hearing Loss Protection as well as several others.

For the stand-down, Sailors are divided into groups and assigned to a starting station. After listening to a presentation they rotate to another station. To ensure that sailors are making it to all of the stations each Sailor is given a sign-in card to be checked at every location.

“One of the most important things that I want Sailors to take away from this stand-down is Situational Awareness,” said Chief Aviation Boatswain’s Mate Robert Scott, Nimitz Safety Department’s leading chief petty officer. “There are all kinds of situations that Sailors need to remember to take a step back and

think ‘What could go wrong with this plan?’ and take the proper steps to avoid a negative outcome.”

A new addition to the stand-down is the Coalition of Sailors Against Destructive Decisions or (CSADD) an organization that focuses on personal safety in all situations, not just in instances concerning alcohol or drugs. CSADD focuses on a different topic each month, ranging from family planning to domestic violence prevention. The Junior Enlisted Association (JEA) is taking the lead on starting a chapter on board Nimitz.

“The Command Master Chief asked us to be the ones to introduce CSADD to the command,” said Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Susana Saenz. “But we are really pushing to get people outside the JEA involved and make this a Nimitz chapter not a JEA chapter.”

For those on watch or unable to attend, the presentations from the safety stand-down are scheduled to air on site TV starting today.

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Stan Monusko, a Navy College Office representative, and Carlton Blaisdell, a NCPACE representative, are available in the Nimitz Academy to answer any questions Sailors have about the NCPACE program.

NCPACE: Get A Degree One Step At A Time Continued from Page 1

way, as long as the class is completed, college credits will be applied towards the Sailor’s degree plan. If a class is failed, the class will stay on their Sailor Marine American Council on Education Registry Transcript (SMART) even if passed at a later time.

Sailors interested in taking classes through NCPACE need to obtain a special request chit approved by their chain of command and the educational services officer (ESO). Prior to registering for classes, the Sailor also needs to attend an NCPACE brief which covers what NCPACE is, how degree and educational plans work and how the Sailor’s military specific training can work toward their education. While the Navy College Office and NCPACE representatives are on board, the briefs are being held on Saturday and Sunday at 8:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. in the Nimitz Academy.

Otherwise, the brief can be done at the Navy College Office at Naval Station Everett.

“We’re not just here to register students for the upcoming September classes but we’re here to prepare Sailors for deployment and the classes that will be

available then,” said Blaisdell.

Sailors don’t need to bring anything with them to the brief but need to fill out an education plan before leaving. An education plan is just a general idea of what the Sailor wants to achieve and can be changed as the Sailor’s situation changes.

“A lot of Sailors join the military for the educational benefits but don’t always take advantage of it,” said Stan Monusko, a Navy college office representative.

“There’s no magic to education, it’s a process anyone can do and we’re here to teach the process. Getting a degree works just like getting a PSQ (personnel qualification standard) signed off, one step, or signature, at a time.”

Sailors interested in learning more about NCPACE and other educational benefits the Navy has to offer can stop by the ESO office located at 2-113-4-Q or visit the distance learning NCPACE website at www. dlncpace.com for more information regarding schools and classes offered.

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Naval Station Everett Mold Clean Up Story Provided by Naval Station Everett Public Affairs

Naval Station Everett acted quickly to deal with mold discovered at their Child Development Center Aug. 1.

While a CDC employee was completing routine cleaning, she discovered the presence of black mold. The CDC employee immediately contacted Naval Facilities Engineering Command, who in turn contacted an Industrial Hygienist. The area was immediately isolated, and all children and CDC staff were removed from the area.

Upon being notified, base Commanding Officer Capt. Michael Coury made the decision to close down the CDC. “The health and safety of our children and CDC staff is our number one priority,” he said. “We are conducting testing quickly to determine if the mold poses a risk, especially whether it is a toxic variety. In addition to testing a remediation plan will be executed as expeditiously as possible.”

Parents were informed that evening by CDC staff.

During the closure, parents were recommended to activate their alternate family care plan.

According to NSE Public Works Officer Dawn Robens, a contractor worked diligently to conduct

a complete inspection and remediate the mold found in the CDC. As a result, remediation was completed on schedule by Aug. 12.

“We take the environmental health and safety of our military personnel and their families very seriously,” said Robens. “We will continue to look for mold issues when conducting routine inspections of all facilities.”

With remediation and testing complete, reconstruction is underway in the classrooms and kitchen area affected by mold. A phased re-opening plan is being implemented for these rooms based on a prioritized reconstruction plan.

While not all the rooms are yet being utilized, results from the sampling identified no significant health risk. All families currently enrolled received private phone calls from CDC staff announcing the re-opening of the CDC on Aug. 13.

Service members and employees are informed about the command support resources available to them when they have work environment concerns.

The Navy is reviewing ways of continuing to ensure a high quality of life for service members and their families.

1812 - Exploring Expedition under Lt. Charles Wilkes embarks on world cruise.

1911 - First Navy Nurse Corps superintendent, Esther Voorhees Hasson, appointed.

1965 - First major amphibious assault in Vietnam, Operation Starlight captures 2,000 Viet Cong.

1966 - First ship-to-shore satellite radio message sent from USS Annapolis (AMGR 1) in South China Sea to Pacific Fleet Headquarters at Pearl Harbor.

1974 - After flooding in Phillipines, Navy helicopters begin six days of operations to rescue people and bring supplies (244 flights).

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TV Guide 5 - 8MM MOVIES 6 - 8MM MOVIES 7 - 8MM MOVIES 8 - ROLLER 9 - DVD TRAINING 10 - FLIGHT DECK 11 - CNN 13 - ESPN 14 - A&E 15 - HISTORY

16 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 29

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NFL NETWORK CBS NATIONAL GEO TBS AMC NBC COMEDY CENTRAL FOX NEWS DISCOVERY DVD MOVIES

Channel 5 0800/2000 1000/2200 1200/0000 1400/0200 1600/0400 1800/0600 0800/2000 1000/2200 1200/0000 1400/0200 1600/0400 1800/0600 0800/2000 1000/2200 1200/0000 1400/0200 1600/0400 1800/0600

Your Highness Mr. Popper’s Penguins Judy Moody Horrible Bosses The Change Up The Smurfs

Channel 6

Super 8 Friends With Benefits Larry Crowne Our Idiot Brother Crazy, Stupid, Love A Better Life

Channel 7 Tranformers: Dark of the Moon

Rocky Captain America Rise of the Planet of the Apes Fright Night Cowboys and Aliens

Channel 29

0800/2000 1000/2200 1200/0000 1400/0200 1600/0400 1800/0600

A-Team Megamind Office Space Social Network Black Hawk Down The Green Zone

Damage Controlman Fireman Kendall Beard conducts a hydrostatic test on a fire hose aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68). (Photo by MC3 Ryan Mayes)