March 7, 2014|VOL. 40| ISSUE 8
Vertical World
A MISSION TO
MENTOR
Creatures Sound of the
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Information Commanding Officer Capt. Jeff Ruth Executive Officer Capt. J.J. Cummings Command Master Chief CMDCM Greg Renick Public Affairs Officer Lt. Cmdr. Karin Burzynski Media DIVO Ensign John Mike Media LCPO MCC Mike Jones Media Production Chief MCC Gregory Roberts Media LPO MC1 Michael Cole Editor MC2 Phillip Ladouceur Lead Designer MC3 George J. Penney III
Media Department
MC2 Jacquelyn Childs MC2 Devin Wray MC2 Ryan Mayes MC2 Jacob Milner MC2 Jess Lewis MC3 Shayne Johnson MC3 Linda S. Swearingen MC3 Vanessa David MC3 W. J. Cousins MC3 Derek Volland MC3 Sam Souvannason MC3 Nathan McDonald MC3 Joshua Haiar MC3 Kaitlyn Haskett MC3 Eric Butler MC3 Siobhana McEwen MCSN Aiyana Paschal MCSN Andrew W. Price MCSN Kelly Agee MCSN Victoria Ochoa MCSN Eli Buguey MCSN Lauren Jennings MCSA Kole Carpenter Nimitz News accepts submissions in writing. All submissions must be in by Friday, COB. 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.
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Second class petty officers take the E-6 advancement exam.
Sailors Take E-6 Exam Story and photo by MCSN (SW) Aiyana Paschal
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pproximately 145 Sailors from the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) took the Navy-wide advancement exam for E-6 on board the ship March 6. The sheer volume of material covered in the exam means proper study technique is a must. Most Sailors found paying attention in your workspace is a good way to learn about your rate. “I prepared by showing up every day and working and doing my job,” said MM2 John R. Waggle. “Studying is doing your job. Constantly being immersed and knowing and wanting to know more about your rate will help you become more knowledgeable.” Some Sailors took a more conventional route when preparing. Finding time to prepare and taking advantage of provided bibliographies (BIBS) is never a bad idea when trying to advance. For many Sailors, becoming a first class petty officer is an important part of their naval career. It means more pay, but also more responsibility. “It’s important to me to make first class because I’m a leader to the juniors below me,” said ABH2 Terence L. Emanuel. “They gave me a lot of encouragement before taking the test. I’m here to help them as well as myself and help the Navy accomplish its mission.” The Navy-wide first class petty officer exam is administered twice a year. Results generally come out a couple of months later.
INSIDE
TRAVEL
Vertical
Pg. 4
World
COMMAND A MISSION TO Pg. 6
MENTOR
TRAVEL
Pg. 9 Creatures of the Sound
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TRAVEL
Story and photo by MCSN (SW) Kelly Agee
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feel pumped as I climb the giant rock wall, carefully stepping from rock to rock as I pull myself up trying not to slip pushing myself not to give up. I have to make it to the very top. As I finish the climb I look down and smile, because I’ve achieved my goal by making this giant climb. If you’re a thrill seeker and love experiencing new physical activities, Vertical World is the place to go. Located in downtown Everett, Vertical World is a place where people with no rock climbing experience can easily learn how to indoor rock climb. It’s a great place to get a good physical workout while having fun. Don’t worry about being completely dressed for the situation. I had cowboy boots on when I visited, and they offer rock-climbing shoes for no additional charge. You are free to bring your own rock climbing gear borrow the gear at the front desk. To climb at vertical world you have to take their introduction climbing class. Classes are on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. or Saturdays at 10:00 a.m.-Noon. During these classes they teach you how to properly harness, to tie knots, lock carabineer and belay devices, belay techniques and your ABCD’s (anchor, buckles, carabiner and device) for a safe climb. The class is $50 for non-members and $35 for members. Once someone
takes the introduction class they can rock climb for free for two weeks. My favorite part about the class is that it was super easy. I never did anything like this before. I was having trouble tying the different knots and the instructor stayed with me and guided me through the steps, making sure I was ready to climb. Another great thing about Vertical World is the family friendly atmosphere. I saw people of all ages climbing, laughing and enjoying themselves. They even offer bouldering and rock climbing classes for kids as young as three. The walls are quite easy to climb because they are marked with colored tape. The colored tape is placed beside the rocks and it guides you to the next rock you should grab onto while climbing. The different colored tapes also tell you the difficulty level of the climb. The main lobby located at the entrance offers water, energy drinks, power bars and healthy snacks for climbers that need more energy to keep climbing throughout the day. To get to Vertical World you head south on West Marine View Drive, then you turn left onto Everett Avenue. Then you turn right onto Rucker Avenue and then you will arrive at Vertical World. It’s only a two minute drive and around a 20 minute walk.
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COMMAND
“
My mission always, both up the chain of command and down to the deck plates is I want to take care of Sailors, and that’s my expectation for all leadership.
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A MISSION TO MENTOR Story and photo by MC3 (SW/AW) Nathan McDonald
The new command master chief aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68), Greg Renick, comes across as affable, approachable and passionate about his upcoming tour of duty. Nimitz News sat down with him recently to hear his goals, expectations and approach to leading the enlisted crew members aboard Nimitz.
Q. Can you give us a history of your work at your previous commands?
A. I was most recently command master chief of Tactical Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 129 on Whidbey Island. Before that, my first command master chief tour was aboard USS Bulkely (DDG 84) out of Norfolk. Before that, I was an operations specialist (OS) master chief and in the OS rate for about 20 years, culminating in the operations department leading chief petty officer on board USS Truman (CVN 75), which is where I got selected for the command master chief program. Q. What sort of experiences from your
previous commands do you want to bring to Nimitz?
A. Unit cohesion is my number one priority. Certainly the core values and a sense of belonging and a sense of purpose is very important to me. I’m also really all about Sailors finding their way in the Navy and really wanting to do this job, wanting to be here and wanting to serve. I make a clear distinction there - it’s not work. It’s coming to serve because we all voluntarily raised our hands to be here. That’s the message I want to sell during my time here. I think it’s very important that people buy into that. We need to be looking out for each other, have cohesion, morale and most of all don’t’ forget to have a good time and enjoy this. Sometimes people get caught up in the strain and the stress and the work, but most of all we should have fun with it. Every day you will see a smile on my
face and it’s a sincere smile. It’s not for show. I think this is the greatest job in the world and what we’re privileged to do for our country is one of the most amazing things we can do. I’m happy to be here and I want Sailors to be happy to be here and love what they do.
Q. Do you have a leadership philosophy you bring to your decision-making process?
A.
I’ve been in the Navy for 26 years this year. I have the same approach I did when I was a junior Sailor, as a leading petty officer and a chief and that’s really looking out for each other completely. It sounds so simple, but it can be very complex to get really good at that. My leadership philosophy is based on bystander intervention, looking out for each other in all aspects, active communication and legitimate care and concern. Sailors will always be the center of my universe and the center of my approach.
Q. What are some goals you’d like to accomplish during your time here?
A.
I want to be able to share my experiences that I have and focus on positives and get that message across to as many people as possible. We need to keep people in and keep them in for the right reasons, people that want to be here. The one goal I have is that when people leave here they’ll know about the Navy, about themselves and about the crew in a positive way. I’m all about the crew and all Continued on page 8
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Continued from page 7
about making the ship a better place –my goals are pretty simple. I consider myself part of the crew, not the leader of the crew. I understand my role and embrace that fully, but I’m part of the crew. I’m approachable. I’m accepting. I’m not here to just lead the chief ’s mess.
Q. What are some things you’ve seen in
Q. What are your expectations from the senior enlisted ranks? A. My expectations of both my chief ’s mess and
The things that I like and that I’m really impressed with is the level of involvement with the chain of command, at the department head level, the chief level, the LPO – there is definitely a sense of connection to what is going on in the ship, and people are upbeat, positive and energized and out there doing what they’re supposed to be doing.
anyone in a leadership role on board this ship is that we always put Sailors first – and that’s everybody. Sailor’s first, then the mission comes behind that, and then our personal pursuits and personal development. My mission always, both up the chain of command and down to the deck plates, is I want to take care of Sailors, and that’s my expectation for all leadership. We’re always looking at ways we can enhance our Sailors’ lives including families. Professional development, personal – it all goes in that bubble.
Q. What are some of the challenges
Q. What are your expectations from
your time here that you take pride in?
A.
you’re looking to tackle during your time here?
A.
First, I am working under the executive officer on a shipboard living policy – basic, dayto-day rules and regulations that we’re going to build into the XO’s standing orders that will ultimately help everyone out because there’s going to be clear direction. The kinds of things I’m talking about that I see are cell phone usage, headphone usage, walking around eating food or chewing gum and berthing regulations. We’re going to put together a very smart and sensible instruction that makes it a standard, and then push that out and enforce it. This is not to make things more difficult on people or change the way we do business necessarily. Everyone should be able to clearly understand the rules. The other challenge I see is the entirety of the shipyard period, the homeport shift to Bremerton, relocating families, communicating with every Sailor and seeing what their plan is and really the big one for me is the transportation challenge. Down range the entire shipyard period presents challenges. Even more so once we get there and get settled and get on our routine, keeping people motivated, making people understand that the mission of the ship at that time is to fix the ship and get the ship ready to go back into combat. That comes with a lot of extra responsibility that we’re not used to – habitability teams and fire watches and inspections and berthings getting ripped out. We’ll be living on a barge and on the ship, offices will have to relocate – it’s a very interesting dynamic. Our mission is going to be to
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go into the shipyard and come out better for it and we need to keep our focus on that.
junior enlisted personnel?
A. They should challenge their leadership, not
verbally or demonstratively, but they should make leadership fulfill their role. As a junior Sailor the expectation is that they’re being taken care of and guided and led appropriately through every single step of their chain of command. I want junior Sailors to make their chain of command work for them in the right ways. I want them to find ways to improve and always do the right thing even when no one is looking. That’s what I expect.
Q. How are you looking forward to
your time as command master chief aboard Nimitz?
A. This
is a phenomenal opportunity. It’s important to me that people know that this is my dream job. For the last 14 years this is where I’ve been steering my career in hopes that I’d have this opportunity. I don’t take that lightly. I will feel the same way about it six months from now as I do now when I’m new to it. I promise you I will work my tail off and will invest in the ship and the crew. I take the responsibility of the office and my job incredibly seriously, but you will also see that I’m very lighthearted and very laid back about certain aspects of it because I don’t want to take myself too seriously and I want to have fun. I respect the office and I am incredibly proud and happy to be serving the crew. I consider myself a servant of the crew in this role.
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Contact your command financial specialist or visit militaryonesource.com. 9
TRAVEL
CREATUR SOUND
OF THE
Story and photos by MC3 Linda S. Swearingen
Starfish, sea cucumbers, seahorses and octopi, oh my! You’ve been out in the middle of the ocean, now discover what lives within the waters below at the Seattle Aquarium. Located on Pier 59 on the Waterfront in downtown Seattle, the Seattle Aquarium hosts a variety of sea and land based animals and amphibious creatures to delight visitors of any age. Open since 1977, the Seattle Aquarium is the ninth largest aquarium in the United States. Featuring educational, interactive and entertaining exhibits on a variety of things such as an Octopus Symposium, the migration patterns of Salmon and a petting pool full of starfish, the Seattle Aquarium has a little bit of everything for those who want to see what creatures live in the oceans of the Pacific Northwest and beyond. To greet visitors there is a 20 ft by 40 ft, 120,000-gallon fish tank at the entrance with fish and other sea life that is indigenous to the Pacific Northwest. There are divers in the tank throughout the day that answer questions from
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visitors through an interpreter on the outside of the fish tank. If you want to get up close and personal with some sea life, then check out the Life on the Edge exhibit, which allows visitors to get their hands wet in the petting pools with creatures such as sea cucumbers and starfish. Behind the Life on the Edge exhibit is one of my favorite things in the aquarium, the Ring of Life. Located in the Life of a Drifter exhibit, the Ring of Life is a clear 12foot tall ring that visitors walk through full of jellyfish lit up by colored lights. The Underwater Dome is a nice place to sit down and take a rest while being surrounded on all sides by a 400,000-gallon fish tank with various species of fish found in the Puget Sound. The Seattle Aquarium doesn’t only have fish and sealife, it also has a few exhibits with marine mammals such as harbor seals, birds and sea otters. There are large enclosures with clear tanks so visitors can see the animals up close and personal. If you look closely you may catch a har-
bor seal eating lunch or a sea otter taking a nap. If you get hungry while wandering through the museum, there is the Aquarium Cafe upstairs where visitors can snack on things such as coffee, cookies, pizza, salads or sandwiches. Don’t forget to hit the gift shop on the way out! Admission to the aquarium is $19 with a military i.d. The aquarium is open from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day of the year except for major holidays. To get to the Seattle Aquarium from Everett, take the 510 or 512 bus from the Everett Transit Station to downtown Seattle and walk toward the Waterfront. The aquarium is located near Pike’s Place at 1483 Alaskan Way, Pier 59. By car from Everett, take I-5 South, take exit 165B Union St, turn left onto 5th Ave, right on Madison and right on Alaskan Way. The aquarium will be on your left hand side. There is metered parking on the street or paid parking in parking garages nearby. For more information on the Seattle Aquarium please visit: www.seattleaquarium.org/
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On The Cover photo by MC3 (SW) NATHAN MCDONALD
Sailors man hoses during a firefighting drill on the flight deck.
Nimitz Media Department captures day to day life
SHOTS
photo by MC3 (SW) DEREK VOLLAND
HM3 Jesus Pacheco, of Atlanta, Ga., prepares yellow fever vaccinations.
DC PREP photo by MC3 LINDA S. SWEARINGEN
DC3 Coy Perkins, of Yonkers, N.Y., calibrates a six gas analyzer in a repair locker.
REPAIR photo by MC3 ERIC BUTLER
MR2 Andrew Elliot, from Roanoke, Ind., right, shows MR3 Cassey Williams, from Paiatka, Fla., how to calibrate a lathe.
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