Flagship 07.08.2021

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 1

IN THIS ISSUE

Preparing physicians For graduating medical interns who are going to their first operational assignments the range of medical procedures and knowledge they are expected to have mastered can be a bit daunting. PAGE A5 VOL. 28, NO. 27, Norfolk, VA | flagshipnews.com

July 8-July 14, 2021

Boatswain’s Mate Seaman Britnee McMahon, from Lewistown, Pennsylvania, assigned to USS Gerald R. Ford’s (CVN 78) deck department, stands lookout watch on the fantail. (MCSN TRENTON EDLY)

This is Ford Class: Fighting the ship with Seaman Apprentice Britnee McMahon

By MCSN Riley McDowell

USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) Public Affairs

ATLANTIC OCEAN — The aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) completed the first scheduled explosive event of Full Ship Shock Trials (FSST) while underway in the Atlantic Ocean.

Prior to the explosion, Ford Sailors manned repair lockers and drilled extensively on damage control scenarios to ensure that

the crew could respond to any casualties that may have been found post-shock.

One of those Sailors is Boatswain’s Mate Seaman Apprentice Britnee McMahon, from L e w i s t o w n , Pe n n s y l v a n i a , assigned to Ford’s deck department. McMahon is a member of Damage Control Repair Locker (DCRS) 2. Deck department Sailors are assigned to DCRS 2 and she is one of nearly 30 boatswain’s mates manning the locker.

Damage control is a skill that all Sailors must possess. As locker personnel earn qualifications and as manning requires, they may move from one team to another.

McMahon has moved twice so far.

“At first, I was on the stretcher bearer team, and then I was moved to the shoring team,” she said. “On the shoring team, we would [practice] dealing with any buckled bulkheads or sagging overheads.

We go in there and place wedges or wood and metal shores to keep

the bulkheads and decks from any further damage. I am like anybody else. I do my part. I try to contribute to everything.”

Before enlisting in the Navy, McMahon attended a trade school for three years, working towards earning her certified nursing assistant certificate when she felt the need to change the direction of her life. When recruiters from all branches of the military came to her school and provided information on enlisting, the Navy stood

out above all the rest.

“I come from a small town and I wanted to get out,” said McMahon.

“I like to help people. I like to get my hands dirty. I wanted to do my part as an American and help my country — get out there and see the world.”

Unlike most in the boatswain’s mate (BM) rate, McMahon was classified as a BM from her recruiting station. She said Turn to Ford, Page 7

IWTC Virginia Beach inspires USNA midshipmen to become IW leaders

NAVSEA NEXTGEN selectee: Devante Ruffin

From Center For Information Warfare Training Publlc Affairs

By Kristi R Britt

VIRGINIA BEACH — Inform at i on War f are Tr ai n i ng Command (IWTC) Virginia Beach recently hosted Midshipmen 1st Class from the United States Naval Academy (USNA) who participated in the first Information Warfare Summer Cruise.

It was a great opportunity for IWTC Virginia Beach to discuss the Navy’s information warfare community (IWC) accession training pipelines and life as an information warfare officer (IWO).

In the summer between their junior and senior year at the USNA, the Midshipmen 1st Class participate in an “immersion” summer cruise for approximately four weeks. The summer training block serves as the capstone of USNA’s maritime and leadership training.

Norfolk Naval Shipyard Public Affairs

Information Warfare Training Command Virginia Beach’s Commanding Officer Cmdr. James Brennan discuss the Navy’s information warfare community accession training pipelines and life as an information warfare officer with Midshipmen 1st Class from the United States Naval Academy. (COURTESY PHOTO)

The Midshipmen 1st Class prepare for the privilege to lead Sailors and Marines by acting as

USFFC retirement www.flagshipnews.com

www.facebook.com/ The.Flagship

www.twitter.com/ the_flagship

Vice Adm. Dave Kriete, deputy commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command (USFFC), retired after 37 years of distinguished service, July 1.

PAGE A3

division officers in training and Turn to IWTC, Page 7

PORTSMOUTH — Recently, Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) saw the selection of five individuals into the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Next Generation of Leadership (NEXTGEN) Program. The NEXTGEN program offers participants the chance to learn about leadership throughout several different initiatives over the course of a year. For Nuclear Welding Engineer (Code 138) Devante Ruffin, he said being selected for this career-building leadership platform within the enterprise is a great opportunity.

“As soon as I heard about this program and the opportunities it gave its participants, I actively sought out how I could apply and be accepted into its ranks,” said Ruffin.

“I want to come out of this as a better leader and soak up as much information, techniques, tactics, methods, strategies, and advice as possible.”

A graduate of Virginia Polytech-

Cheyenne shifts homeport to Groton

Naval Submarine Base New London recently welcomed USS Cheyenne (SSN 773) to the waterfront in Groton, Conn., as the submarine joined the ranks of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 12.

PAGE A2

nic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Ruffin joined the NNSY workforce in 2018. He first learned about NNSY after attending the Virginia Tech Engineering Expo Career Fair the fall semester after his graduation where NNSY representatives met with promising engineers looking for a future career in America’s Shipyard. “A good portion of my childhood and teenage years were spent not very far from NNSY,” he said. “I got the opportunity to be interviewed by someone who would become one of my current coworkers. In a few months I was called back about my interest in joining the shipyard and I accepted, moving back to the area to join the America’s Shipyard team.”

Ruffin’s role as Nuclear Welding Engineer consists of a range of responsibilities and services within the Welding Division, including his primary role of working on systems that support the reactor and its primary components.

Turn to NAVSEA, Page 7

EARD To align maritime operations more closely with those on the aviation side, NAVSUP WSS introduced the Engineering Agent Responsibility Document (EARD).

PAGE A4

THE FLAGSHIP’S FREE HOME DELIVERY South Hampton Roads: Get the convenience of your Navy newspaper delivered right to your door for free!

Signup today!

Call 222-3900

2

The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Though the sixth ship bearing the name USS Relief since 1836, she was (and still is) the ONLY naval vessel ever constructed from the keel up as a floating hospital. (ANDRE SOBOCINSKI)

Remembering USS Relief (AH-1), the Navy’s floating fortress of health

By André Sobocinski BUMED Public Affairs

FALLS CHURCH, Va. — In 1936, Our Navy correspondent Mary McElliott was given special access to the hospital ship USS Relief (AH-1). She would marvel over its design and capabilities writing, “If you are accustomed to thinking of a hospital ship as a large institution, with a grim, forbidding exterior, and a solemn, mysterious interior, where an air of hushed expectancy hovering over its corridors causes one to speak in whispers and walk on tip-toes, a visit to the hospital ship USS Relief, will be a pleasant and enlightening surprise.”

USS Relief (AH-1) holds a special place in the annals of Navy Medicine. Though the sixth ship bearing the name Relief since 1836, she was (and still is) the ONLY naval vessel ever constructed from the keel up as a floating hospital. And although the fifth hospital ship employed by the U.S. Navy since 1898, she was the first ever bestowed a hull number.

When commissioned on December 28, 1920, the Relief could boast the same ameni-

ties as the most modern hospitals at the time—large corridors and elevators for transporting patients, and fully equipped surgical operating rooms, wards, galleys, pantries, wash rooms, laboratories, dispensaries, as well as a sterilizing/disinfecting room—all with “sanitary” tiled flooring.

Measuring 483 feet in length, a normal displacement of 10,112 tons and a mean draft of 19 feet, the Relief has been the Navy’s largest hospital ship in use until the launching of USS Refuge (AH-11) in 1944. Aside from a 500 bed-hospital onboard, she also held a field hospital unit complete with tentage, a fully stocked pharmacy, and an ambulance. Over the years the unit was deployed in support of expeditionary operations and earthquake relief efforts in Managua, Nicaragua (1931) and Long Beach, Calif. (1933).

Born out of experiences wars and careful study of medical ships used by foreign navies, AH-1 had been—at least—many decades in the making.

Even before there were “official” hospital ships in service, the Navy had long designated vessels to care for its sick and wounded. In

1803, the 60-foot ketch Intrepid, fresh from a daring sortie into the fortified harbor of Tripoli, was fitted out to receive casualties from the schooner Enterprise. During the Civil War, the store ships Home and Ben Morgan were employed as naval station hospitals in Charleston, S.C. and Richmond, Va. Perhaps the Relief ’s fame is only surpassed by another Civil War hospital ship, a captured Confederate side-wheeler named after a James Fennimore Cooper character—USS Red Rover. Plying its trade up and down the Mississippi River from Memphis to Mound City from 1862 to 1865, the Red Rover is often credited as the Navy’s first hospital ship. Both Red Rover and Relief each played a special role in the history of military nursing. The former had been the first hospital ship to employ the services of women volunteer nurses. Nearly sixty years later, USS Relief was built with special quarters for Navy nurses.

On February 15, 1921, she set sail with eleven nurses on board—the first Navy women ever assigned to a ship’s company.

In the Spanish-American War and World War I, the Navy ships Solace (AH-2), Comfort

(AH-3) and Mercy (AH-4) were used primarily as ambulances ferrying patients from the theater of operations to stateside hospitals.

For much of her career with the Pacific Fleet Relief was every bit the floating hospital and was designed to take care of sick and wounded until they could be returned to duty. She was even equipped with “ambulance motor boats” that could hold 12 stretcher patients and six ambulatory patients or 30 ambulatory patients at a time. These motor boats were also regularly used to transport its dentists and physicians through the fleet for “ship calls.”

Along with USS Solace (AH-5), the Relief was one of two hospital ships in commission at the start of World War II. Over the course of her wartime service she would admit some 16,159 patients and evacuate over 10,000 wounded from campaigns in Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Peleliu, Saipan-Tinian, and Okinawa.

Her five battle stars were the second most of any hospital ship in World War II (surpassed only by the well-travelled Solace).

At the end of hostilities, USS Relief took part in the massive repatriation of American POWs and then serve as a stationary hospital for the 1st Marine Division at Taku, China.

On February 28, 1946 she returned to Norfolk, Va. remaining in service until being decommissioned on July 19, 1946. Her nearly 26 years in commission was a record for hospital ships until finally surpassed by USNS Mercy (T-AH-19) and USNS Comfort (T-AH-20) in 2003.

Cheyenne shifts homeport to Groton

From Naval Submarine Support Center, New London Public Affairs

GROTON, Conn. — Naval Submarine Base New London recently welcomed USS Cheyenne (SSN 773) to the waterfront in Groton, Conn., as the submarine joined the ranks of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 12.

The Los Angeles-class submarine completed a scheduled homeport shift from Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in order to begin preparations for the boat’s upcoming refueling.

“Cheyenne is here to conduct preparations for the boat’s upcoming refueling and we’re really excited to welcome the boat from Pearl Harbor,” said Boland. “We look forward to working with the officers and crew of Cheyenne.”

Cmdr. Samuel Bell, commanding officer of Cheyenne and a native of Wrightstown, New Jersey, was excited to bring his boat to the submarine capital of the world.

“The crew of ‘The Legend’ is excited to join

our fellow submariners in the Submarine Capital of the World,” said Bell. “We appreciate the warm reception from SUBRON 12 and thank them for helping us rejoin with our families after the trip from Hawaii.”

Cheyenne was commissioned Sept. 13, 1996 and is the third U.S. naval ship to be named after the city of Cheyenne, Wyoming. Measuring 360 feet long and displacing more than 6,900 tons, the submarine has a crew of approximately 140 Sailors.

Cheyenne is capable of supporting a variety of missions, including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface ship warfare, strike warfare, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance SUBRON 12’s mission is to provide attack submarines that are ready, willing, and able to meet the unique challenges of undersea combat and deployed operations in unforgiving environments across the globe. It is one of two SUBRONs based out of Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Conn.

Editorial Staff Military Editor | MC1 Peter Lewis, news@flagshipnews.com Managing Editor | Ensign James Caliva, news@flagshipnews.com Graphic Designer | Trisha Irving, trisha.irving@virginiamedia.com

Flagship, Inc.

MNV Military Manager | Ski Miller, ski.miller@virginiamedia.com Advertising Inquiries | Ski Miller, ski.miller@virginiamedia.com Free Classified Advertising, 757-622-1455 Distribution/Home Delivery, Distribution@pilotonline.com

The Los Angeles-class submarine USS Cheyenne (SSN 773) arrives at Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Conn. for a scheduled homeport shift. (DC3 CHRISTIAN BIANCHISANTIAGO)

Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic (CNRMA): Rear Adm Charles W.“Chip”Rock Regional program manager for Navy Region Mid-Atlantic (NRMA): Public Affairs Director | Beth Baker The Flagship® is published by Flagship, Inc., a private firm in no way connected with the Department of Defense (DOD) or the United States Navy, under exclusive written contract with Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic.

This civilian enterprise newspaper is an authorized publication for members of the military services. Contents of the paper, including advertisements, are not necessarily the official views of, nor endorsed by, the U.S. Government, DOD, or the Department of the Navy (DON). The appearance of advertising in this publication, including inserts and supplements, does not constitute endorsement by the DOD; DON; Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic or Flagship, Inc. of the products or services advertised. Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase,use, or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation, or any other non-merit factor of the purchaser, user, or patron. If a violation or rejection of this equal opportunity policy by an advertiser is confirmed, the publisher shall refuse to print advertising from that source until the violation is corrected. Editorial content is edited, prepared and provided by the Public Affairs Department of Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic.

Stories may be submitted via email to news@flagshipnews.com.

The Flagship® is published every Thursday by Flagship, Inc., whosemailing address is located at PO Box 282501, Norfolk, Va. 23510. © 2021Flagship, Inc. All rights reserved

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 3

Rear Adm. Nancy Hann, acting director for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, met with the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport’s Chief Technology Officer Dr. Jason Gomez to discuss an agreement that will allow NOAA and NUWC Division Newport to leverage each other’s technical expertise and infrastructure to enable innovation and advance Navy missions. (JAMES TRAVASSOS)

NUWC Division Newport building collaborative partnership with NOAA

By Evan Crawley

NUWC Division Newport Public Affairs

NEWPORT, R.I. — A new agreement is in the works for a direct partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport, which would increase and improve knowledge sharing and allow for more real-time collaboration between the two entities.

Rear Adm. Nancy Hann, acting director for NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO), took the stage at NUWC Division Newport on June 21 to share her group’s mission and explain the important role NOAA plays in data collection.

“We touch pretty much everyone’s life, every day,” Hann said and cited the wide range of services that NOAA provides.

NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in climate, weather, oceans and coasts; to share that knowledge and information with others; and to conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and resources, Hann said.

Hann is responsible for the leadership and management of OMAO’s operational assets, including a fleet of 16 research and survey vessels and nine aircraft. She also visited Division Newport in May to discuss mutual capabilities and interests and to begin a more formal partnership between NOAA and the Division.

NOAA’s current presence in Newport includes two ships homeported at Naval Station Newport’s Pier 2 on Narragansett Bay — the NOAAS Henry B. Bigelow (R 255), supporting the science and research missions of NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center, and the NOAAS Okeanos Explorer (R 337), known as “America’s ship for ocean exploration,” which conducts operations around the globe, mapping the seafloor and characterizing largely unknown

areas of the ocean.

Hann reported plans for an expanded NOAA presence in Newport, pending budget appropriations, which would include two additional ships and a shore-side facility.

This, in addition to a pending formal agreement between NOAA and Division Newport that would foster a closer, more robust relationship by ensuring greater awareness of data being collected and access to subject matter experts.

“Any data we have, you’re welcome to it,” Hann said during the presentation.

“This agreement will allow NOAA and NUWC Division Newport to leverage each other’s technical expertise and infrastructure to enable innovation and advance our missions,” said Sarah Blackstock, an oceanographer in Division Newport’s Chief Technology Office. “NOAA’s expanded presence in Narragansett Bay presents a valuable opportunity to work more seamlessly with our new neighbors, and communicate in real time about our technical objectives and needs. These two visits from Rear Admiral Hann demonstrate that there are abundant areas in which NOAA and NUWC efforts can be aligned to provide maximum benefit to both parties.”

The agency, which sits under the U.S. Department of Commerce, a fact that Hann admitted may seem odd, supports “economic vitality and affects more than one-third of America’s gross domestic product,” according to the NOAA website.

“All of the things we do drive commerce,” Hann said.

Uncrewed systems (UxS) is NOAA’s first key science and technology focus area out of six total, with other areas aligning to the Division’s capabilities such as artificial intelligence (AI), data, and “citizen science,” or open collaboration between individuals and organizations participating in the scientific process.

A segment of Hann’s visit highlighted collaborative partnerships with industry and academia. Paula Bontempi, dean of the University of Rhode Island (URI) Graduate School of Oceanography (GSO), and Andrew Greene, senior technologist for Division Newport’s Undersea Warfare (USW) Tactical Oceanographic Sciences Branch, discussed efforts between Division Newport and URI GSO’s tactical oceanography program.

“Oceanography is a well-established discipline internal and external to the Navy,” Greene said about the collaboration efforts. “Tactical oceanography is a field in its infancy and requires integration of oceanography with sub fields of expertise in acoustics, weapons, signal processing and electromagnetics.”

Division Newport is working to establish tactical oceanographic rigor throughout its technical departments to support their technical domains. The current workforce development approach is to recruit oceanographers from nationally recognized oceanography programs and build the additional skill sets through mentoring. The purpose of the GSO/ NUWC collaboration is for the university to take on the role of preparing oceanography graduates with the aforementioned skills sets.

In the future, this will create and establish pipeline of tactical oceanographers for Navy and the Department of Defense.

Division Newport’s Chief Technology Officer Dr. Jason Gomez also provided an overview of the command, and Dr. Elizabeth Magliula, director of Division Newport’s Naval Engineering Education Consortium and SMART program, spoke about the National Institute for Undersea Vehicle Technology (NIUVT) , a collaboration between Division Newport, URI, the University of Connecticut, and Electric Boat, and the Marine and Undersea Technologies (MUST) partnership with University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth.

The visitors also toured the Marine Mammal Laboratory, the Unmanned Underwater Vehicle Laboratory and other facilities at NUWC. During her presentation, Hann also discussed the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps, which is separate from military branches like the Navy or the Coast Guard, there are 330 uniformed officers within NOAA, including Hann, who are trained in engineering, earth sciences, oceanography, meteorology and fisheries science. Onboard ships, they operate alongside wage mariners who perform the deck, engineering, steward and survey tech functions, and when assigned, ships can also host scientific parties of up to 28 additional people and associated equipment for data collection.

The presentation, aimed at new professionals at the Division, was attended by about 125 employees.

“These types of events open my eyes to the partnerships we have, help my understanding that our work is part of a bigger picture, and are opportunities to learn about different possibilities to tailor my career path to work on projects that I would be passionate about,” said Vince Legaspi, a new professional and program analyst in the USW Electromagnetic Systems Department.

NUWC Division Newport is a shore command of the U.S. Navy within the Naval Sea Systems Command, which engineers, builds and supports America’s fleet of ships and combat systems. NUWC Newport provides research, development, test and evaluation, engineering and fleet support for submarines, autonomous underwater systems, undersea offensive and defensive weapons systems, and countermeasures associated with undersea warfare.

NUWC Newport is the oldest warfare center in the country, tracing its heritage to the Naval Torpedo Station established on Goat Island in Newport Harbor in 1869.

Commanded by Capt. Chad Hennings, NUWC Newport maintains major detachments in West Palm Beach, Florida, and Andros Island in the Bahamas, as well as test facilities at Seneca Lake and Fisher’s Island, New York, Leesburg, Florida, and Dodge Pond, Connecticut.

USFFC deputy commander dives into retirement

By MC2 Brooke Macchietto

U.S. Fleet Forces Command Public Affairs

NORFOLK —Vice Adm. Dave Kriete, deputy commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command (USFFC), retired after 37 years of distinguished service, July 1.

Kriete was joined by family, friends and colleagues from USFFC and the submarine community in front of USS New Hampshire (SSN 778) at pier 12 on board Naval Station Norfolk.

USFFC Commander Adm. Christopher W. Grady served as the guest speaker, and praised Kriete for performing superbly in command at every level and taking his role as a mentor very seriously.

“Certainly, as we can all see, the Navy, the Department of Defense, the Nation, and indeed the world in many respects are where we are today because of his unparalleled knowledge and ardent pursuit of the mission,” said Grady. “You always kept the center of the universe—our Sailors, both active and reserve, civilian shipmates, and our families—at the forefront of your efforts.

You never wavered from your commitment to providing them everything they need to remain resolute, ready and lethal on arrival.”

In addition to being USFFC’s deputy commander, Kriete also served as director Strategic Capabilities Policy, National Security Council, where he was responsible for presidential policy on all nuclear weapons related issues.

“I’ve never been in a bad command,” said Kriete. “The missions were sometimes similar, sometimes the missions were different. But every single one of them had awesome people that I worked with and we had tremendous degrees of teamwork. Just kind of eye-watering to think back about how a group of people would pull together to get whatever the mission was done.”

Kriete, a 1982 graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy, who also holds a master’s degree in

engineering management from Old Dominion University, stressed the importance of going to work every day with the right mindset.

“I’d say my advice is pretty simple. Come to work and just try to do your best every day at whatever it is that you’re asked to do, no matter where you are in the pecking order,” said Kriete. “The second thing is to find a way to contribute positively to your organization, your command, your work center, your division every day. Find something to contribute that makes the organization better—the team better. The third thing is find some way to improve yourself every day as well—reading, learning, talking, and listening. I think those are very simple keys to success.”

Kriete served in many capacities above and below the water line. His flag assignments include deputy commander, United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska; commander, Submarine Group 9 in Silverdale, Washington; deputy director, plans and policy, U.S. Strategic Command; and deputy director, force employment at USFFC. His operational assignments include command of Submarine Squadron 6 and USS Rhode Island (SSBN 740), aboard USS Kentucky (SSBN 737), USS Flying Fish (SSN 673) and USS Finback (SSN 670).

Kriete said amongst all of these different commands, one of his most memorable experiences was serving in the Pentagon on Sept.

11, 2001, as well as the weeks after.

“In the days and weeks after September 11, what I got to see firsthand was the way the workforce, military and civilian combined, was not going to let the fact that a piece of the building was still burning get in the way of doing their job to help support defending the country,” said Kriete.

In fact, Kriete said it would be the people that he will miss the most about serving in the U.S. Navy.

“Certainly we have great people in all parts of the Navy, at all ranks in all communities,

Vice Adm. David Kriete, center, deputy commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command (USFFC) passes through the side boys during his retirement ceremony on board USS New Hampshire (SSN-78). (MC2 BROOKE MACCHIETTO)

at all levels,” said Kriete. “But it’s the way the people in the Navy, almost reflexively, will just work together to get whatever needs to be done, done, and to do it really well. That level of teamwork, mission focus, with strong leadership, or even often without any leadership, we just kind of do that naturally.”

When asked about his plan after retirement,

Kriete said that he and his wife Kathleen were going to spend time decompressing a little, but mainly focus on what they would like to do next.

“I do want to find some way to keep serving,” said Kriete. “Not sure what that is, but that will be part of my thought process. For me, serving in the Navy has been an honor of a lifetime.”

4 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

An MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter attached to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 21 assigned to Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Charleston (LCS 18) delivers cargo during a vertical replenishment with Sri Lanka Navy Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel SLNS Gajabahu (P-626) as a part of Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT). (MC3 ADAM BUTLER)

NAVSUP WSS introduces EARD to expand maritime engineering authority

By Brian Jones

NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support Public Affairs

PHILADELPHIA — Naval Supply Systems Command Weapon Systems Support’s (NAVSUP WSS) Source Development and Engineering Department has had significant involvement on aviation related sourcing, however, there was not the same infrastructure in place to support the command’s maritime operations. To align maritime operations more closely with those on the aviation side, NAVSUP WSS introduced the Engineering Agent Responsibility Document (EARD).

“For the Aviation Enterprise, the Source Development and Engineering Department has been delegated engineering Authority by NAVAIR for processing Critical Application Item (CAI) technical requests along with some authority to process Critical Safety Items (CSIs) for specific types of support,” said Daniel Lenza, NAVSUP WSS Source Development Department director.

“Based on our technical ability and outstanding track record for processing aviation technical requests, leadership felt that those same efficiencies could be incorporated on maritime operations.”

The maritime engineering authority was expanded to combat Diminishing Manu-

facturing Sources and Material Shortages (DMSMS), obsolescence and other sourcing issues. DMSMS is the loss or impending loss of qualified sources, manufacturers or suppliers that may cause shortages in design, manufacture, sustainment or disposal of an item or system. Obsolescence is ultimately when a specific part number has no available manufacturing sources.

The Source Development and Engineering Department designed proof of concept projects that identified DLA-339s, or technical requests for engineering support, generated by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and submitted to the Navy via the Engineering Support Request System (ESRS). NAVSUP WSS is the focal point for both aviation and maritime 339s. The aviation enterprise processes approximately 9,000 339s per year versus almost 11,000 per year for maritime.

“We performed a pilot on incoming DLA-339s for equipment associated to the 30-plus In-Service Engineering Activities (ISEAs) by reviewing, analyzing and recording recommended solutions and comparing them to the actual responses recorded from the ISEAs. This effort identified the various types of technical requests that could provide value to the Maritime Enterprise and helped validate that NAVSUP WSS was providing the same solution set for those areas,” said Lenza.

“Senior leadership from both NAVSUP WSS and NAVSEA acknowledged the outstanding track record performed by the Source Development and Engineering Department in conjunction with our Delegated Engineering Authority for the Aviation Enterprise as evidence for expanding that support to the Maritime Enterprise.”

The proof-of-concept projects were completed and identified the universe of DLA-339s and Technical Referrals (TR) requiring ISEA engineering disposition proving NAVSUP WSS is capable of resolving many engineering or technical issues. The EARD was generated as the mechanism to give NAVSUP WSS the authority to adjudicate key issues.

“The EARD is a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between NAVSEA and NAVSUP WSS and outlines the delegated technical responsibilities to NAVSUP WSS for Engineering Support Requests and Alternate Source Approval requests for both manufacturing and repair,” said Lenza.

The Source Development and Engineering Department is still in the planning stages for the complete EARD roll-out. There is currently an internal NAVSUP WSS Continuous Process Improvement project in progress titled “Gaining Maritime Engineering Authority” comprised of subject matter experts from Source Development and the Operation

Codes in Mechanicsburg laying out the new process with a pilot to commence this month.

“The pilot will capture NAVSUP WSS managed TRs with a focus on both Source Approval Requests (SARs) and various engineering support TRs for non-Special Emphasis program components,” said Lenza. “This effort will ensure procedures are streamlined, process enhancements are promulgated, and the appropriate communication is flowing between NAVSUP WSS and the various ISEAs.” Through the EARD, NAVSUP WSS will mirror maritime supply operations more closely with those on the aviation side to improve support to the fleet.

“This effort was one that I have been pursuing since I took over my present position in 2010,” said Scott Morrow, NAVSUP WSS Engineering and Product Support Directorate deputy director. “Breaking away from the old paradigm is huge. We have demonstrated our engineering skills and are set up for success. I firmly believe this effort will improve the cycle time in supplying spare and repair parts to our maritime customers.”

NAVSUP WSS is one of 11 commands under Commander, NAVSUP. Headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, NAVSUP employs a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 22,500 military and civilian personnel. NAVSUP and the Navy Supply Corps conduct and enable supply chain, acquisition, operational logistics and Sailor and family care activities with our mission partners to generate readiness and sustain naval forces worldwide to prevent and decisively win wars.

TOGETHER WE WIN $

52,000 IN 52 WEEKS TO 52 WORTHY CHARITIES

“We would like to thank Rosie’s for their donation. It will be used to help indigent individuals with a substance use disorder get the help they need the same day that a request is made!”

Melanie Belden

Financial Controller | McShin Foundation Every week in 2021 we will donate $1,000 to a local nonprofit that is providing valuable services in the areas we are located.

Helping those communities around us is at the core of our operational philosophy. We truly believe that high tides raise all ships and we are determined to add value to the communities in which we operate.

Through the charitable program, Rosie’s Gives Back, Colonial Downs Group has made monetary and in-kind donations of more than $1,335,500, and has logged over 1,100 service hours in Virginia communities.

Must be 18 or older. Problem Gaming? Call the Virginia Help Line at 1-888-532-3500.

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 5

Lt. Andrew Freeman, a transitional intern at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, demonstrates his cast cutting skills during a training segment as part of a Simulation Training for Operational Medical Providers (STOMP) course at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth. (CDR DENVER APPLEHANS)

Preparing physicians to ensure warfighter medical readiness

By Cmdr. Denver Applehans BUMED Public Affairs

PORTSMOUTH — For graduating medical interns who are going to their first operational assignments as General Medical Officers (GMOs), Flight Surgeons and Undersea Medical Officers, the range and breadth of medical procedures and knowledge they are expected to have mastered can be a bit daunting.

Naval Medical Readiness and Training Commands Portsmouth, San Diego and Bethesda work to dispel those concerns through the Simulation Training for Operational Medical Providers (STOMP) course offered annually in the spring.

A total of 46 physicians are in the process of completing the course at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth this week as they get ready to take

on jobs in the Fleet and Fleet Marine Force this summer.

The course is a practical, comprehensive simulation-based course conducted in three phases: Phase I includes standardized patient scenarios for common sick call complaints; Phase II is an opportunity to refresh and practice common skills in the “Skills Rodeo;” Phase III is a series of informational briefs called the PEARLS lectures in Psychiatry, Radiology, and Administration. Taken together, the course provides a refresher of common medical procedures as well as the nuts and bolts of medical care in an operational environment.

“STOMP bridges the gap between the varied clinical exposure that internship affords and the needs of operational commands,” said Capt. Joy Greer, Director, Healthcare Simu-

lation and Bioskills Training Center, NMRTC Portsmouth. “STOMP ensures that our motivated graduates are ready to provide care for sailors and marines in an operational setting.”

In the course, physicians practice a multitude of procedures and review case scenarios from a range of disciplines including general surgery, neurology, orthopedics, cardiology, psychiatry, dermatology, emergency medicine, gynecology, podiatry, ophthalmology and otorhinolaryngology, all to ensure physicians are prepared to maintain and support warfighter medical readiness.

The role of the Naval Medical Readiness and Training Commands (NMRTCs) is to hone the skills of those ashore at military treatment facilities to keep medical professionals ready to deploy in support of operational commitments around the globe. This course is one

concrete example of how the NMRTCs fulfill that mission.

“First and foremost, we are a readiness and training platform to ensure our whole medical force is prepared to provide the best care in the worst conditions individually and as a team,” said Capt. Shelley Perkins, NMRTC Portsmouth commanding officer. “This program builds on academics by providing a structure to hone skills and build the confidence to know when and how to use those skills. Our people leave here and project medical power supporting U.S. naval superiority all over the world.”

The course also serves as a readiness check to assess and confirm military physician primary care knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) prior to credentialing at their next assignment.

Graduates of the courses have even continued to engage with the program, providing feedback on what was most valuable and developing a smartphone app to ensure ready access to materials.

The STOMP course is one way in which Navy Medicine is focused on providing welltrained people, working from well-developed platforms, operating as high performance teams to project medical power in support of naval superiority.

THOSE WHO SERVE COULD

SAVE MORE WITH A SPECIAL

MILITARY DISCOUNT 109 Volvo Parkway Chesapeake

757-549-1772

ALWAYS READY.

When you’re called to serve, you need gear that’s ready to serve with you. Streamlight’s wide range of lighting tools are durable and dependable and backed by nearly 50 years of commitment to our military. Our lights are always ready for duty.

Some discounts, coverages, payment plans and features are not available in all states, in all GEICO companies, or in all situations. GEICO is a registered service mark of Government Employees Insurance Company, Washington, DC 20076 a Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary. © 2020 GEICO. 20_549328606

STREAMLIGHT.COM © 2021 STREAMLIGHT, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

6 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

NSWCPD employees recognized for participation on NAVSEA’s Inclusion, Engagement Council

By Gary Ell

Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division Public Affairs

PHILADELPHIA — Three Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD) employees —Alicia Sasso, Daniel Miller and Doris Tung — were recognized with Department of Navy (DoN) Civilian Service Achievement Medals (CSAMs) for their participation on the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Inclusion and Engagement Council. Giao Phan, Executive Director, NAVSEA held a teleconference Awards Ceremony, where medal recipients and leadership across NAVSEA participated on the call.

The CSAMs, the fifth highest honorary award in the DoN, were presented to Sasso, Miller and Tung in recognition of their significant contributions to the U.S. Navy while serving as inaugural members of the NAVSEA Enterprise Inclusion and Engagement Council, from October 2018 to October 2020. Over a two year span, this council made significant strides in advancing NAVSEA’s commitment to building and sustaining an engaged and inclusive workforce.

The citation from Vice Adm. William Galinis, NAVSEA commander, reads in part, “Your dedicated efforts and sustainable initiatives have made a positive impact on the enterprise workforce … Your involvement has directly influenced NAVSEA policies and processes through devising an Internal Promotion and Hiring Process policy, as well as an Interview Candidate Survey. These efforts reinforce NAVSEA’s commitment to merit-based hiring decisions and provide vital post-interview feedback to candidates to assist them with meeting their respective career goals and strengthen the workforce. You have developed the framework for NAVSEA’s Inclusive Workforce Competencies, which will provide opportunities to eliminate barriers, encourage innovation, foster collaboration, and empower our talented employees…”

“I personally want to congratulate Alicia, Dan and Doris on this outstanding achievement that creates a strong foun-

Three Naval Surface Warfare Center, Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD) employees --Alicia Sasso, Daniel Miller and Doris Tung -- were recognized with Department of Navy (DoN) Civilian Service Achievement Medals (CSAMs) for their participation on the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Inclusion & Engagement Council. (DANIEL MILLER)

dation on which subsequent councils can build toward fostering a more inclusive and engaged workforce at NSWCPD and the NAVSEA Enterprise,” said Capt. Dana Simon, NSWCPD commanding officer.

Sasso, who serves as the deputy department head for the Machinery Research, Logistics & Ship Integrity Department, stated: “Being on the I&E Council was important to me because I am the mother to three special needs children, I wanted to help create a more accepting and inclusive workplace for all people.” Sasso has been with NSWCPD since 2008.

Miller is the Scientific & Technical Intelligence Liaison Officer for NSWCPD, on staff to the Commanding Officer and Technical Director. He has more than 40 years of

civilian government service across numerous engineering, management, and sensitive security positions. Miller also served 30 years as an Intelligence Officer with the U.S. Naval Reserve. Throughout both careers, he has been an avid supporter of a wide range of diversity and inclusion initiatives.

“As a career-long advocate for Diversity and Inclusion priorities, I was very proud to be part of the inaugural team created to address some of the underlying issues that can impact employee engagement while working to ensure sustainment of the resultant initiatives,” Miller stated.

Tung has served as the Acquisition Policy and Oversight Division head, and has been with NSWCPD since 2003.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to have served on the I&E council. It was not only a chance to contribute, but to learn from my fellow panel members as well as all those within our NAVSEA community,” Tung remarked.

NSWCPD employs approximately 2,700 civilian engineers, scientists, technicians, and support personnel. The NSWCPD team does the research and development, test and evaluation, acquisition support, and in-service and logistics engineering for the non-nuclear machinery, ship machinery systems, and related equipment and material for Navy surface ships and submarines. NSWCPD is also the lead organization providing cybersecurity for all ship systems.

4 T H O F J U LY

SHOWER & BATH SALE OVER 10,000

5-STAR REVIEWS

BCI

5ZERO YEARS! INTEREST 50% OFF INSTALL ON ALL SHOWERS & BATHS

IS YOUR AT-HOME LIFESTYLE CHANGING? WE CAN HELP WITH COMFORT AND ACCESSIBILITY SOLUTIONS Whether you need greater accessibility or just need to replace an outdated tub with a beautiful new shower, West Shore Home offers an assortment of options to fit any bathroom.

HASSLE-FREE PROCESS Customize your dream shower or bath with your desired safety features that are installed in as-little-as one day with financing options for everyone.

SAFETY FEATURES •GRAB BARS •LOW-THRESHOLD PANS •SLIP-RESISTANT PANS •SHOWER SEATS

PROVIDING A SAFE & CONVENIENT EXPERIENCE

WE ARE FOLLOWING ALL CDC GUIDELINES

CALL TODAY OFFER ENDS SOON

From 1,000’s of online reviews

ONLINE CONSULTATIONS AVAILABLE We can design your shower or bath in an online contactless design consultation.

757-280-2257

*New orders only. Subject to credit approval. Fixed APR of 0.00% for 60 months. Actual payments based on usage. If full credit taken on approval date, payments for 6 month promo will be $16.67, followed by 54 monthly payments of $16.67 for each $1,000 financed. If transaction is later, the 54 monthly payments could be as high as $18.52. Financing for GreenSky® consumer loan programs is provided by federally insured, equal opportunity lender banks. NMLS #1416362. Wall surround styles and options vary per state. Minimum purchase may apply. See design consultant for details. Other restrictions may apply. **50% off install equals 10% of the overall purchase price. Expires July 11th, 2021. 270504092

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 7

IWTC from Page 1

Norfolk Naval Shipyard’s Nuclear Welding Engineer (Code 138) Devante Ruffin was recently selected as part of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Next Generation of Leadership (NEXTGEN) Program. (ALDO ANDERSON)

NAVSEA from Page 1

He says he’s always looking for new ways to challenge himself and grow as an individual, seeking opportunities to further develop himself. “I like to take on new and exciting challenges on a daily basis,” said Ruffin. “I’ve taken on a few other responsibilities, including volunteering to become the Code 138 Lead Representative for Vision, Opportunity, Inclusion, Cause, and Execution, Diversity (VOICED) team. In the VOICED team, I help evaluate the DEOCS survey comments, evaluate the ongoing concerns of the workforce, and work on improvement plans to help address those areas of concern.”

Ruffin has also represented the shipyard at recruiting events at his alma mater. “It’s rewarding to help others, aiding them in their path towards their success. When I see the work I do positively impact someone or a project, it brings me so much gratification in knowing that I have the ability to make a difference.”

To his peers, Ruffin is a passionate worker who does his best every day. “Once he puts his mind on a project, no matter how challenging it may be, he will see it through to the end,” said Non-Nuclear Welding Engineer Bilal Khalid.

“He always maintains professionalism for himself and the code and treats people the way he would like to be treated. That is, with respect, helpfulness, and being friendly, well-mannered and even-tempered.”

“Devante is known for getting newer team

members involved and active within our code and is always willing to lend a hand,” said Nuclear Welding Engineer Jake Galant. “He is very passionate about the people of the shipyard and would like to see this shipyard grow as a family to become more successful as the years pass by. I think he will bring dedication, hard work, and fresh ideas to this NEXTGEN Program and inspire others to succeed as well.”

Nuclear Welding Engineer Mayank Awasthi added, “He is a professional, punctual, and focused engineer. Along with his strong work ethic skills and leadership qualities, I know Devante will contribute his knowledge, innovative ideas, and positive attitude throughout the NAVSEA Next Generation leadership program as well as to the enterprise at large scale.”

Though the COVID-19 pandemic forced the NEXTGEN Program to adapt to a mostly virtual environment, Ruffin is excited for the opportunities to connect with others and learn from his peers across the enterprise. “Being part of the NAVSEA NEXTGEN Program means I have a chance to grow personally and professionally through the entirety of the program. Continuous improvement is something I hold dear to my heart and I’m always trying to improve myself in any aspect of my life. Having the advantage of seeing and learning what it takes to be a great leader and representative of the NAVSEA Enterprise firsthand is something that I don’t plan on missing out on. This program is a foundational building block of my personal journey into becoming the next great leader.

I’m excited for what’s to come!”

interacting with a Wardroom and Chief ’s Mess. This cruise also helps them confirm their expectations about warfare community preferences. Warfare cruise options are surface, submarine, aviation, IWC, explosive ordinance disposal, special warfare, cyber and intelligence programs, leatherneck, or Marine air-ground task force training. Accordingly, the Midshipmen 1st Class should select a warfare cruise that reflects their future career desires. Those who are still uncertain about their warfare community preferences are encouraged to select a cruise of their second or third choice community to gain broader exposure to that community.

This is the first summer in which a dedicated IWC cruise has been developed for the Midshipmen 1st Class to participate.

As part of the IWC cruise, they will visit various information warfare commands around the Hampton Roads area to interact with IWC officers and enlisted personnel while gaining a better understanding of the community at large.

During their time at IWTC Virginia Beach, they had the opportunity to discuss what they can expect from their IWC designator specific accession training pipelines, life as an IWO, as well as the detailing process they will experience in their first few years as a newly commissioned officer.

The IWTC Virginia Beach staff were able to provide their own insights and experiences to the them while answering any questions asked.

“The first IWC dedicated summer cruise is a great opportunity for these Midshipmen 1st Class to make an informed decision to join the community and what they can

Ford

from Page 1

that the favorite part of her rate is being 19 years old and getting to drive a billion-dollar warship.

Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Richard Abreau, from New York, assigned to Ford’s deck department as second division leading petty officer, explained why he believes McMahon is destined for success in the Navy.

“Because of her willingness to learn and adapt, I can see her leading her own deck division one day as a leading petty officer or leading chief petty officer,” said Abreau.

“She has an up-beat attitude, resiliency to get the job done and is an energetic Sailor.”

McMahon said some of her most memorable moments since checking onboard in November 2020 have come while standing her deck watches.

“I like standing watch as aft-lookout, watching the jets come up above us in order to land on the flight deck. Its definitely a rush. It looks like the jets are coming right for you,” she said.

Even though she has only been onboard

expect as newly commissioned officers,” stated IWTC Virginia Beach Commanding Officer Cmdr. James Brennan. “It is important for them to understand how their chosen designators contribute to the various missions of the fleet, and we are excited to have been included in their summer training.”

Midshipmen 1st Class who are interested in selecting Naval Intelligence upon graduation from USNA will return to IWTC Virginia Beach later this summer to participate in several discussion panels with both the intelligence senior enlisted and junior officer staff to gain better insight into the intelligence community as well as an understanding of the intelligence specialist enlisted rating training pipelines.

IWTC Virginia Beach currently offers 59 courses of instruction in information technology, cryptology, and intelligence with an instructor and support staff of 278 military, civilian, and contract members who train over 6,600 students every year at five training sites in the Hampton Roads area. It is one of four school houses for Center for Information Warfare Training (CIWT) and also oversees learning sites at Jacksonville and Mayport, Florida; Kings Bay, Georgia; and Groton, Connecticut to continue aligning information warfare community training.

With four schoolhouse commands, a detachment, and training sites throughout the United States and Japan, CIWT trains approximately 26,000 students every year, delivering trained information warfare professionals to the Navy and joint services.

CIWT also offers more than 200 courses for cryptologic technicians, intelligence specialists, information systems technicians, electronics technicians, and officers in the information warfare community. for a short time, McMahon explained that she is excited for what the future holds.

“I definitely see myself doing more hands-on stuff, trying to help my shipmates out as much as possible,” said McMahon.

“I am looking forward to working on my enlisted surface warfare specialist and aviation warfare specialist qualifications. I am also working hard on making rank to third class. I think the Ford will be a great ship.”

During explosive event two and three of FSST, McMahon will once again be manning her repair locker, preparing to respond to any casualty that may arise.

“I was more excited about the first shot than anything. I was excited to go home and tell my family that an explosive charge was set off next to our ship and that this hasn’t been done in 35 years,” McMahon said. “Going in to the next two shots, I am still excited but a little bit more nervous as the shots get closer. I think we will be ready to respond to any possible casualties.”

The U.S. Navy conducts shock trials of new ship designs using live explosives to confirm that our warships can continue to meet demanding mission requirements under harsh conditions they might encounter in battle.

Car Loan Decisions in Seconds

We can help you save on a new or used car with a Navy Federal car loan.1

• Great interest rates • Fast approval process • Low monthly payments Easily apply with our mobile app,2 online or at your local branch.

navyfederal.org/auto Insured by NCUA. NFCU 13884-A (4-21)

1Credit and collateral subject to approval. 2Message and data rates may apply. Visit navyfederal.org for more information. © 2021 Navy Federal

8 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 1 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

PROUDLY OFFERING AMERICAN MADE PRODUCTS

ROOFING | WINDOWS | SIDING | TRIM GUTTER PROTECTION

JULY SAVINGS EVENT No Down Payment

No No Monthly Interest Payment Until 2023

Plus 60% off labor + FREE estimate

(757) (866) 942-4209 723-2063

WWW.PARAMOUNTBUILDERS.COM/PARAMOUNT-PILOT POP

uarterdeck

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 1

USS Billings

The Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Billings (LCS 15) is underway on its maiden deployment to the U.S. Fourth Fleet area of operations.

Page B6

DoDEA Expanded Eligibility Pilot Program accepting applications

By Aaron Talley

DoDEA Public Affairs

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) returns to Naval Air Station North Island, May 25. (MC3 OLYMPIA MCCOY)

USS Theodore Roosevelt to change homeport for planned maintenance, upgrades From Commander, Naval Air Forces Public Affairs SAN DIEGO — The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) will depart San Diego July 16 in order to change its homeport to Bremerton, Washington and conduct a docking planned incremental availability (DPIA) at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS).

The DPIA is scheduled to commence this September and will include a system retrofit to accommodate the F-35C Lightning II mission capabilities, as well as upgrades to the ship self-defense system (SSDS), the Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES) network, and the Mk 38 25mm machine gun, as well as refurbishment and preservation of the ship’s hull, rudder, propulsion shaft, anchor, and 25 berthing spaces.

Approximately 3,000 Sailors and their families will relocate from San Diego to Bremerton as part of the homeport shift. Theodore Roosevelt is scheduled to arrive in Bremerton July 20.

Theodore Roosevelt returned to San Diego May 25, following a six-month deployment conducting maritime security operations, and ensuring freedom of navigation and economic trade in the Indo-Pacific region.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is accepting applications for a new program aimed at expanding eligibility for dependents of active-duty members of the armed forces to register for the DoDEA Virtual High School (DVHS). The Expanded Eligibility Pilot Program, which will begin in school year 2021-22, was authorized as part of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, providing expansion of eligibility for DVHS to stateside active-duty military dependents in grades 9-12 who are currently ineligible for the DVHS. In order to be eligible for the pilot program, students must be the dependents of activeduty military members who are serving in remote locations that do not have a DoDEA brick-and-mortar high school. The program will be limited to 400 enrollments, split evenly among the four military services, with priority given to students in the 12 th grade.

Students who participate in the pilot program can take up to two courses per academic year.

The initial pilot program will target school districts serving remote installations in stateside locations, but applications will be accepted from all students that are eligible.

Students registering in the DVHS as part of the pilot program must obtain the approval of their local school system.

DoDEA Chief of Technology and Innovation C. Michael Kline said that the Expanded Eligibility Pilot Program is designed to supplement educational opportunities for stateside military-connected students in remote locations. “We think this program will help students by allowing them to take courses that might not be offered at their local schools and will be of great value as they pursue future educational opportunities,” said Kline.

Homeschooled students who are compliant with state laws can also register for the Expanded Eligibility Pilot Program. The program will offer students the chance to take up to two courses from a selection of more than 30 courses already offered by the DVHS. These courses include Advanced Placement courses, world languages, and career and Turn to DoDEA, Page 7

NAVCENT commander joins Egyptian president in welcoming new Egyptian naval base From NAVCENT Public Affairs MANAMA, Bahrain — Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), attended the opening of the newest Egyptian Naval Force base, in the port of Gargoub, on the Mediterranean Sea, July 3.

Cooper joined President of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, chairman of Libya’s Presidential Council Mohamed al-Menfithe, U.S. Ambassador Jonathan R. Cohen, Egyptian defense leaders and other top naval officials from among Egypt’s maritime partner nations for the opening ceremony at the base on the country’s northwestern coast.

“Egypt’s Navy is making strong strides at modernizing, and expanding its reach to enhance maritime security,” Cooper said.

“It’s exciting to be at an event like this one, as U.S. and Egyptian naval forces are charting an even brighter course together.”

In the past month, U.S. and Egyptian naval vessels have conducted two passing exercises (PASSEX) in the Red Sea. The most recent took place June 29 between Egyptian Navy guided-missile frigate ENS Taba (FFG 916) and aircraft carrier USS

Egyptian Navy guided-missile frigate ENS Taba (FFG 916), front, conducts a passing exercise with aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) in the Red Sea. (MC3 SAWYER HASKINS)

Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) and guided-missile cruiser USS Vella Gulf (CG 72).

A PASSEX is an exercise in which multiple ships, operating in close vicinity, practice joint evolutions to improve crews’ knowledge, navigation, and interoperability.

In April, Egypt became the 34th member of CMF, an enduring multinational coalition formed in 2002 and committed to upholding the rules-based international order by countering illicit non-state actors, safeguarding freedom of navigation, and promoting security, stability, and prosperity.

The 5th Fleet area of operations encompasses about 2.5 million square miles of water area and includes the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea and parts of the Indian Ocean. The expanse is comprised of 20 countries and includes three choke points critical to the free flow of commerce.

2

The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Heroes at Home

Q: Does RPP help me save money?

A: The RPP offers real cost savings to Service members living in the community. The program guarantees the Service member reduced rates and reduced or no security deposit and administrative fees. Also, RPP requires rent be paid by allotment or electronic funds transfer, making it one less bill you have to think about every month.

NAVY HOUSING Norfolk (757) 445-2832 JEBLCFS (757) 462-2792 Oceana/Dam Neck (757) 433-3268 Yorktown (757) 847-7806

Virginia Beach oceanfront (DENIS TANGNEY JR)

Navy wife favors seashore despite shark uproar

By Lisa Smith Molinari I feel fortunate to have been a Navy spouse, because our family had the pleasure of living near the beach for nearly two decades. Other than a stint in D.C. and two joint tours in Europe, our Navy family was always stationed in coastal areas where we could access the ocean, if not see it right out of our base kitchen window. My Navy wife friends and I felt so superior, with our in-your-face nautical-inspired clothing and home decor adorned with anchors and whales and signal flags and boats, as if we were married to Captain Ahab himself.

We pitied our poor Army and Air Force comrades, stationed in olive drab Timbuktu, staring out of their base kitchen windows at grain silos.

“Bless their hearts,” we claimed, while clinking mojitos in anchor-embellished Tervis tumblers and sunning ourselves from the comfort of our beach chairs.

We never admitted to our landlubber counterparts that living near the ocean had its drawbacks. Like hurricanes, one of which dropped an 80-foot loblolly pine into the master bedroom of our first house in Virginia Beach, thanks to a little storm named Isabel back in 2003. And rip currents, which cause

more than 100 deaths per year in the US, and always prevented me from relaxing while my kids were in the surf.

But there’s a coastal critter that strikes fear in the hearts of every salt-life-loving Navy wife, even the ones with L.L. Bean totes obnoxiously embroidered with lobsters. In fact, this deadly ocean dweller frightens civilian and military Americans alike: Sharks.

The summer of 1975 was vividly imprinted on my brain. I was nine years old, and our family had traveled to visit my grandfather, aunt, uncle and cousins. Louisville, Kentucky was the “big city” to my brother and I, so our cousins planned activities that weren’t offered in our small Pennsylvania town yet. Like cheeseburgers and Frostys at Wendy’s, and the new Steven Spielberg movie, “Jaws.”

The air-conditioned theater was frigid that hot July afternoon. I shivered from the chill and the creeps at images on the big screen before me. Listening to the rhythmic “dun-dundun-dun” of the now-iconic movie score, we watched scuba diving Richard Dreyfuss inspect a huge shark tooth he plucked from a hole in a sunken boat hull. Seconds later, the violin strings screeched when a severed human head floated out of the same hole — a classic jumpscare, effective to this day. However, my flinch

was superseded by my father nearly jumping out of his seat and emitting a childlike scream, popcorn flying from his bucket.

I didn’t know it then, but the movie “Jaws” would implant irrational, yet permanent fear in the American psyche. As a Navy family, we’ve frolicked in the waves near many coastal duty stations all summer long in Virginia, California, Florida and Rhode Island. But we never let on that, under our nautical-inspired beachwear and sun-tanned faces, we were terrified of sharks lurking under the waves, sniffing the sea for flesh and blood.

This constant, semi-subconscious anxiety wasn’t enough to keep us off the beach, but it was enough to make us freak out — “Kids! Out of the water!” while flailing our arms wildly — when we felt something (always turned out to be a jellyfish) or saw a fin (always turned out to be a dolphin). Although unprovoked shark attacks are extremely rare (only 16 per year in the US, almost none fatal), Americans can’t escape sources of information and entertainment that keep our fear alive and well: The inevitable news reports highlighting shark bites in excruciating detail, web-based shark trackers that follow tagged beasts like cuddly 12-foot Great White “Ironbound”, Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week” which begins July 11, a new movie titled “Great White” coming to the U.S. July 16, and endless “Jaws” summer replays of course.

How is a beach-loving Navy spouse to cope with all this shark-fear mongering? Move to a landlocked base and stare at grain silos? No way. I’ll stay at the beach and swallow my anxiety, along with an ice cold mojito.

Helping Your Children Change Schools

FUNCTIONS AND/OR SERVICES FFSC PROVIDES: ClinicalCounseling(Individual, Couples,a nd Child Counseling) Personal Financial Management Information & Referral Family Employment Assistance Transition Assistance Family Advocacy Program Deployment and Mobilization Support Ombudsman Support Relocation Assistance Parenting Programs Stress and Anger Management Command Support Crisis Support SuicidePrevention SAPR Support

From MilitaryOnesource Frequent moves to new duty stations is a fact of military life, and your child will be asked to respond to the routines and demands of military life as well. Being prepared to help your schoolage children change schools can go a long way to helping them adjust to their new environment in healthy ways. Parent preparation can mean a smooth school move for your children from one school system to the next.

When making moves within the continental United States, the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children addresses educational transition issues of military families. Adopted by all states and the District of Columbia, the Interstate Compact replaces varying individual state education policies that affect transitioning military dependent children and supports uniform treatment for these students as they transfer between school districts and states. The Interstate Compact covers all schools, including Department of Defense Education Activity, or DODEA, schools.

The Interstate Compact addresses educational transition issues of military families such as eligibility, enrollment, placement and graduation, making it easier for military children to enroll in needed classes, play sports and graduate on time. Here are some of the ways states are helping you make a smooth move for your children.

Immediate enrollment When leaving your school district, you can get unofficial records to carry to your new school. Your student will be able to enroll without delay, even before the official transcript arrives. If your child needs additional immunizations, you can enroll and take care of these requirements within 30 days.

Placement and attendance support Your children will be placed in appropriate required classes, advanced placement and special-needs programs while awaiting evaluation at their new school. That means your

Mid-Atlantic Fleet and Family Support Centers (FFSC) programs and services are designed to help you make the most of your military experience, and they’re all available to you at no cost.

(COURTESY PHOTO)

child won’t be put in a “holding class” while your new school is taking the time to assess him or her. The Interstate Compact also enables a student to miss school for military-related reasons or to request excused absences before, during or after a deployment.

Special education services If your student is covered by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, federal law protects your child’s right to receive the same services identified in his or her existing individual education program, or IEP. The receiving school may perform subsequent evaluations to ensure appropriate placement.

Extracurricular participation If your child is eligible, the new school will facilitate participation in extracurricular activities even if application deadlines or tryouts have passed.

Graduation Rest assured that your high schooler’s graduation will not be affected. Here are some examples of how the Interstate Compact assists with checking off graduation requirements: Course waivers: If your child has already completed similar coursework, the new school shall waive courses required for graduation.

Exit exams: The new school district shall accept your child’s exit exams and achievement tests required to graduate from his or her previous school.

Senior-year transfers: If your student changes school during his or her senior year, the two school districts will work together to get a diploma from the former school to

ensure on-time graduation.

School liaisons School liaisons are located at every installation and are especially helpful in dealing with your school transition issues.

This local resource has well-established relationships with school administrators, district officials and state departments of education and can help with your transition needs. School liaisons are available for all Department of Defense identification card holders, educators who service military students and community partners within the pre-K-12 education realm. School liaisons understand the military experience and are here to help with your child’s move to a new school. Contact the school liaison at your current or acquiring installation for help with: Transition support, including school districts and boundaries Alternative school options and programs, including private, parochial, charter and home school School and community information nearby Special education Deployment support Compliance with the Interstate Compact Youth programs inside and outside of school Scholarship and grant resources College, career and military readiness You can also call Military OneSource to connect to an education consultant for help with everything from tutors to tuition. Don’t wait until the move occurs. Call 800-3429647 or set up a live chat today. OCONUS/ international? View calling options.

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 3

NPS Assistant Professor of Oceanography Dr. Mara Orescanin has been awarded a grant through the highly-competitive National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER program. (MC3 LEONARD WESTON)

NPS oceanography professor wins National Science Foundation CAREER program grant

By MC3 Leonard Weston

Naval Postgraduate School Public Affairs

MONTEREY, Calif. — Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) Assistant Professor of Oceanography Dr. Mara Orescanin was recently awarded a five-year grant through the highly-competitive National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER program. The grant will afford Orescanin with an opportunity to build on her already existing research exploring intermittent rivers, bar-built estuaries and beach breaches and closures, all of which can have considerable impact on amphibious operation planning and execution.

The NSF Faculty Early Career Development

(CAREER) program supports high-performing early-career faculty who have the potential to both serve as academic role models in research and education, and the ability to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. The program aims to help researchers build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership.

“It was pretty awesome getting [this award],” said Orescanin. “In the academic world, when you get that, it’s a validation of the relevance and significance of your work.

My goal is to tailor my research and provide relevance to the warfighter, so I’m excited to see how it transpires.”

Her research titled, “Hydrodynamic and

Morphodynamic Evolution of Beach and Breaching Closure,” will provide insight on how coastal areas change in environments that go through wet and dry seasons providing valuable information for amphibious operation planning. As the wet and dry seasons shift, the waterline can change from one day to the next as an area that have water flowing as a river can be a coastal beach the next day. This sudden shift in waterline can make an area unpredictable and affect operations.

When referring to intermittent rivers as part of beaches, Orescanin noted, “Rivers are going to change the structure of your beach and it’s going to change the firmness of the

sand and currents in the surf zone. So, if you think down to the human level of special forces or ship-to-shore movements, doing a beach landing and having strong currents that are resulting from these rivers, this propagates changes affecting their safety and operations throughout the surf zone.”

While she is the one at the front of the classroom, Orescanin said she often learns as much from her mid-career Navy and Marine Corps officer students as they do from her, providing an informed perspective on what the navy’s operational needs are for amphibious and littoral operations.

According to NPS Dean of Research Jeffrey D. Paduan, the award reflects the quality of the applied research underway at NPS, and how this environment benefits the students.

“The recognition shows NPS faculty are among the best in the nation,” said Paduan.

“The five-year project funding is also a benefit for that it is designed to allow Dr. Orescanin time to plan and execute a significant research program in her area of coastal oceanography.

Several METOC [Meteorology and Operational Oceanography] students are expected to participate in and benefit from the program over the course of those five years.”

4 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) won the Florida Sterling Manufacturing Business (SMBE) Excellence Gold Award. (ASHLEY LOMBARDO)

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast wins Florida Sterling Manufacturing Business Excellence Award

By Ashley Lombardo

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast Public Affairs

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) was recently honored as a Gold level award recipient of the 2021 Florida Sterling Manufacturing Business Excellence (SMBE) Award.

FloridaMakes and the Florida Sterling Counsel issue the awards annually to recognize organizations that have achieved superior performance. A rigorous finalist list included 20 organizations out of 140 who competed from around the state, vying for recognition and SMBE Gold, Silver, and Bronze awards.

“We are truly honored to have been selected as an SMBE Gold award winner,” said FRCSE Commanding Officer Capt.

Grady Duffey. “This recognition is a testament of the outstanding work that is accomplished at the depot every day by our unparalleled civilian workforce. They are the heart and soul of our command’s Level III element and the reason we can bring home such a prestigious award!”

Each year the SMBE awards set a new state-wide standard by distinguishing only Florida’s highest performing manufacturers, elevating the playing field for every company specializing in this sector throughout the Sunshine State.

“The SMBE award is where the Florida Sterling Council and FloridaMakes overlap,” said Phil Centonze, Sterling Council

member and lead SMBE examiner. “The evaluation process is based on the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, which is a proven model that’s used for evaluation and identification of the practices of bestin-class organizations. Using this method, which has been around for about 30 years, allows us to collaborate and bring the SMBE award to manufacturers throughout Florida.”

Each competitor is judged based on seven categories: leadership, strategy, customers, measurement, analysis and knowledge management, workforce, operations and results. Once winners are selected, they are separated into three categories based on excellence, from Gold to Bronze.

After nomination, companies are notified and asked to submit an organizational profile questionnaire, a seven-page document that serves as the second step in the process.

“Each step of this award submission is time-consuming, but that’s a huge reason why it carries so much prestige,” said Holly Martinez, FRCSE’s Executive Director.

“The examiners ask questions to get familiar with the ins and outs of the organization, and with one as large and complex as FRC Southeast, covering the gamut of our programs, structure and business takes a fair amount of time and resources to convey adequately.”

The questionnaire portion of the competition requires nominees to provide company

basics like a mission statement, customer base and code of ethics. And still, there are dozens of more detailed questions covering a wide array of topics like strategy objectives, workforce performance, action plans and social responsibilities.

The first leg of step three is a two-hour presentation-style conference call covering a diverse range of topics in a Q&A format.

The SMBE examination team ask questions throughout the presentation while forming a comprehensive understanding of the organization. After the conference call, the team determines whether the nominee is fit to move forward.

At this point, an onsite facility tour and a second presentation-style Q&A would generally take place. However, things were complicated for competitors and judges alike this year, thanks to continued concerns over COVID-19, but that didn’t stop FRCSE from putting its best foot forward.

Instead of an onsite tour, the SMBE team opted for a virtual live or prerecorded facility tour to help fill in the missing pieces.

“Before the pandemic, a team of evaluators would visit our facility and walk our production areas to observe operations,” said Anthony Casullo, FRCSE’s Public Affairs Officer. “They would be able to talk with people and gain an understanding of who we are and what we do. The challenge this year was achieving this in a virtual setting, which led to the idea of a video tour of the depot.”

Understanding the complexity of creating

a virtual tour of a facility that spans more than 70 buildings and is home to over 5,000 personnel was left to Casullo and his team.

“With the video tour limited to 30 minutes, I knew we would need to make every second count,” Casullo said. “The public affairs team worked hard at producing something that would give the evaluators a fundamental understanding of our mission, products and people. Fortunately, we have an exceptional workforce and it wasn’t hard to find people to step up and tell our story, highlighting the great work that happens throughout FRCSE.” The Q&A and presentation were the final feathers in the cap. Judges use this material and a rubric of information within each criterion to make final deliberations.

“The site visit, which was completed virtually this year, was composed of two separate but equally vital parts - the virtual tour, and the presentation and Q&A,” said Martinez.

“The presentation and Q&A provided the examination team with a thorough explanation of who we are and how we conduct business. Several key members of the command leadership team participated in this step, with each presenting a topic area based on the award criteria. We were able to achieve great success with this process due to the seamless collaboration among all the people involved.”

From beginning to end, the process for FRCSE took about seven months. Now, all that’s left for the pros at the depot is acceptance of their trophy.

Fleet Readiness Center Southeast (FRCSE) is Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia’s largest maintenance, repair, overhaul and technical services provider, employing more than 5,000 civilian, military and contract workers. With annual revenue exceeding $1 billion, the organization serves as an integral part of the greater U.S. Navy, Naval Air Systems Command, and Commander, Fleet Readiness Centers by maintaining the combat airpower for America’s military forces.

NAVWAR demonstrates tomorrow’s technologies during NAVIFOR visit

By Elisha Gamboa

Naval Information Warfare Systems Command Public Affairs

SAN DIEGO — Naval Information Forces (NAVIFOR) Commander Vice Adm. Kelly Aeschbach met with Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) top leaders and key innovators June 30 through July 1 to discuss a high priority Navy initiative aimed at harnessing the most advanced capabilities available today, while accelerating the development of the most innovative technologies of tomorrow.

With this being her first San Diego area trip since becoming NAVIFOR Commander, Aeschbach was welcomed by NAVWAR Commander Rear Adm. Doug Small who gave her an update on Project Overmatch, a Department of the Navy effort to deliver a more lethal, better-connected fleet of the future by connecting manned and unmanned platforms, weapons and sensors together in a robust Naval Operational Architecture that integrates with Joint All-Domain Command and Control for enhanced Distributed Maritime Operations.

Critical to this initiative is the development of networks, infrastructure, data architecture, tools and analytics that support the operational and developmental environment that will enable sustained maritime dominance for years to come.

“Emerging technologies have expanded the modern fight and made contested spaces more lethal,” said Aeschbach. “While the technological environment is changing at an alarming rate, one thing remains the same, our people.

It is the people across our country - military, government, industry and academia who are our most valuable weapons system.

NAVWAR understands that collaboration is

Vice Adm. Kelly Aeschbach, left, commander, Naval Information Forces (NAVIFOR) meets with Rear Adm. Douglas Small, commander, Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR) and NAVWAR Executive Director John Pope while visiting the systems command’s Old Town San Diego Campus at Naval Base Point Loma, San Diego, Ca. (RICK NAYSTATT)

critical to our success, leveraging the best of the best to rapidly deliver a decision advantage for a more lethal and better-connected fleet far into the future.”

During the visit, Aeschbach toured Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Pacific, the principle research arm of NAVWAR, where engineering experts demonstrated the latest in digital technologies in support of Project Overmatch, including the NAVWAR developed Overmatch Software Armory, a cloud-enabled digital environment using industry-standard development, security and operation (DevSecOps) principles that

brings the rapid delivery of software capability to the fleet.

Moving forward, the Project Overmatch team will continue to work across System Commands, Warfare Centers, the other armed services as well as a consortium of industry expertise, both defense and commercial, and academia to effectively use modern innovations like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and information and networking technologies for improved U.S. Navy and Marine Corps readiness worldwide.

NAVWAR identifies, develops, delivers

and sustains information warfighting capabilities and services that enable naval, joint, coalition and other national missions operating in warfighting domains from seabed to space and through cyberspace. NAVWAR consists of more than 11,000 civilian, active duty and reserve professionals located around the world.

NAVIFOR’s mission is to generate, directly and through our leadership of the IW Enterprise, agile and technically superior manned, trained, equipped, and certified combat-ready IW forces to ensure our Navy will decisively deter, compete, and win.

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 5

Vice Adm. Brian Brown, then-commander, NAVIFOR, addresses the first P-IWC class. (CWO3 JESSICA FISHER)

Streamlined, refined training: Information warfare commanders prepared for operations at sea

By CWO3 Jessica Fisher

NIWDC Public Affairs

NORFOLK, Va. — Recently, the Navy Information Warfare Development Center (NIWDC) completed its inaugural Prospective Information Warfare Commander’s (P-IWC) Course. This three-week course was developed as part of the U.S. Fleet Forces and Pacific Fleet tactical training continuum, which in part outlines training requirements for the P-IWCs. NIWDC’s Fleet Training Department was responsible for developing the training course, which resulted in this three-week customized curriculum that ensures incumbents are thoroughly prepared for current and future operating environments.

The new training pipeline for IWCs has significantly changed from past IWC training. The amount of time needed to fulfill prescribed training requirements exceeded more than 100 days. NIWDC’s training course pares that time down to less than 100 hours, a drastic reduction that allowed

for higher completion rates of the training, and the incorporation of course content specifically tailored to IWCs. The goal was to create a syllabus that goes beyond filling knowledge gaps learned at community milestone schools, and moves toward targeted training, intermediate stops, and in-depth discussions to achieve the end state of an operationally and tactically honed IWC at sea.

The first two weeks of the course largely focuses on tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs), doctrine for an IWC, and war gaming, taught by IW Warfare Tactics Instructors (WTIs) and other NIWDC staff. The final week includes intermediate stops to NIWDC’s Type Commander, Navy Information Warfare Forces (NAVIFOR), as well as other local IW commands such as Fleet Weather Center Norfolk, Navy Cyber Defense Operations Command (NCDOC), Navy Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station Atlantic (NCTAMSLANT), and the Information Warfare Training Group (IWTG). Video

teleconferences with operational units and numbered Fleet IW leaders are conducted as well.

During their turn over period and before the change of command ceremony, Vice Adm. Brian Brown, commander, NAVIFOR, and then-Rear Adm. Kelly Aeschbach, prospective commander, NAVIFOR, along with Rear Adm. Mike Vernazza, commander, NIWDC, served as guest speakers for this first iteration of the P-IWC course.

Ten P-IWCs were in attendance for the initial P-IWC course: Capt. Anthony Butera, assigned to Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 1; Capt. Thomas “TJ” Gilmore, assigned to Commander, Second Fleet; Capt. Joshua Himes, assigned to CSG 12; Capt. Kurt Mole, assigned to CSG 5; Capt.

Peter Shepard, assigned to CSG 8; Capt.

Craig Whittinghill, assigned to CSG 3; Capt. (select) Lisa Brennen, assigned to Commander, Fifth Fleet; Capt. (select) Matthew Celgeske, assigned to CSG 11; Cmdr. Obie Idris Shabazz, assigned to

Expeditionary Strike Group 2; and Cmdr.

Joshua VerGow, assigned to Commander, Amphibious Squadron 6.

These officers were a blend of information warfare designators - 1810, 1820, and 1830.

Another goal of the program is to expand the audience to include senior Numbered Fleet Intelligence (N2) and Communications (N6) who might serve as IW Integrators, Maritime Operations Center (MOC) Directors, or Deputy MOC Directors. The course is required for all IW designators upon board selection for the position of IWC. The P-IWC course is planned for bi-annual iterations (spring and fall), and is intended to readily flex to incorporate emerging TTPs and other pertinent or new information in order to maintain a sharp, ready IWC cadre.

“I am extremely proud of our fleet training team. They streamlined the curriculum to an executable timeline focused on the warfighting environment,” Vernazza said.

“Our IWCs will bring increased knowledge, depth and breadth, providing greater warfighting capability and increased lethality to the Carrier and Expeditionary Strike Groups.”

NIWDC is the U.S. Navy’s IW tactical center of excellence, which enhances fleet high-end warfighting capabilities and readiness across the operational and tactical levels of war. For more information regarding the IWC course, please contact NIWDC PAO at NIWDC_PAO@navy.mil.

Naval Hospital Jacksonville celebrates 80 years of health, readiness

By Jeanne Casey

Naval Hospital Jacksonville Public Affairs

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — On July 1, Naval Hospital (NH) Jacksonville celebrated 80 years of providing health care and readiness.

“For 80 years, Naval Hospital Jacksonville has kept our Navy and Marine Corps family ready, healthy, and on the job,” said Capt.

Teresa Allen, NH Jacksonville’s commander.

“We look forward to delivering health care and readiness for another 80 years.”

On July 1, 1941, Naval Hospital Jacksonville was commissioned, with 41 inpatients, as a facility for service members. The first patient, Seaman Robert Tillery, was treated for an ulcer.

At the time, signs of war were growing.

German U-boats were spotted off Florida’s shores. Just five months later, the U.S. was attacked at Pearl Harbor and declared war.

During World War II, the hospital expanded to 1,000 beds. In 1943, 50 WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) reported for training at the hospital, to enable male Hospital Corpsmen to deploy to the front lines.

NH Jacksonville opened a facility for family members on Dec. 11, 1944, and delivered the first baby the next day.

During the 1970s, the hospital cared for 27 former POWs. In 1988, 22 sailors were treated here after a blast aboard the USS Bonefish. In 2004, 12 Seabees recovered here from injuries sustained in Iraq.

NH Jacksonville has a proud tradition of supporting operational missions around the globe, while providing care on the home front.

Over the decades, the command has deployed its staff to conflicts, DoD missions, and humanitarian crises across the globe — including: • Bahrain, Croatia, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Haiti, Iraq, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Ukraine; • USNS Comfort missions to Central and

South America; • locations across the U.S. to care for COVID-19 patients; • the USS Kidd while underway, to conduct COVID-19 testing, contact tracing, and mitigation; and • the state-run, federally-supported Jacksonville Community Vaccination Center, to support COVID-19 vaccines.

In recent years, NH Jacksonville has continued to innovate, becoming: • the pilot site for a virtual visits app and value-based care; • the first hospital on Florida’s First Coast to earn Baby Friendly certification from Baby Friendly USA; • the first in DoD to earn a tobacco-cessation Gold Star from Prevention Partners; • the first Navy hospital to transition to the Defense Health Agency; • the second site to host Navy Medicine’s Hospital Corpsman Trauma Training program; and • a member of the first wave of DoD sites to administer COVID-19 vaccines.

Today, the command supports five military installations, 68 operational units, and 376 commands (including 119 enrolled commands).

From 1941 to today, NH Jacksonville has delivered health care, warfighters’ medical readiness to deploy, and clinicians’ readiness to save lives in combat theaters.

Naval Hospital Jacksonville and Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command Jacksonville deliver health care and readiness. NH Jacksonville (which includes five branch health clinics across Florida and Georgia) serves 175,000 active duty, active duty family members, and retired service members, including 57,000 patients enrolled with a primary care manager. NMRTC Jacksonville (which includes five units across Florida and Georgia) ensures warfighters’ medical readiness to deploy and clinicians’ readiness to save lives.

Aviation Maintenance Administrationman 2nd Class Justin West places his 2-year-old son on a scale to be weighed by a medical assistant at Naval Hospital Jacksonville’s Pediatrics Clinic.

(DEIDRE SMITH)

6 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

The Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Billings (LCS 15) gets underway, June 30. (MCC JAMES CLIFFORD)

USS Billings deploys to support regional cooperation, security From Littoral Combat Ship Squadron Two Public Affairs NAVAL STATION MAYPORT, Fla. — The Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Billings (LCS 15), is underway on its maiden deployment to the U.S. Fourth Fleet area of operations.

Billings will support counter-narcotics oper-

ations in the Caribbean Sea. Billings will also conduct practical exercises and exchanges with partner nations, supporting U.S. 4th Fleet interoperability and reinforcing the U.S. position as the regional partner of choice.

The deployment of an LCS to the region aims to demonstrate the U.S. commitment to regional cooperation and security. The LCS’s shallow draft provides unparalleled opportu-

nities for port access, making the ship an ideal vessel for these types of engagements.

Billings will be manned by approximately 100 Sailors, including the “Thundercats” of LCS 15 Gold Crew 119, a U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement detachment, and the “Kraken” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 28, who will operate an embarked MH-60 helicopter.

“The ship and crew is ready to deploy and operate with other nations in the Fourth Fleet area of responsibility,” said Cmdr. Brian Forster, commanding officer of USS Billings (Gold Crew). There is no higher honor than to lead this crew of tough professionals during this mission set.”

An LCS is a fast, agile, and networked surface combatant, optimized for littoral zones. The primary missions for the LCS include countering threats from diesel submarines, littoral mines, and attacks by small surface craft to assure maritime access for joint forces.

“This deployment will be the longest I have been away from home but I am eager to finally get out to sea,” said Logistics Specialist Seaman Arabel Porraz. “We have been training and practicing for months and I am excited that we are finally able to leave port and do real world missions.”

LCS is a highly maneuverable, lethal and adaptable ship designed to support focused surface warfare, mine countermeasures, and anti-submarine warfare. LCS integrates new technology and capability to affordably support current and future mission capability from deep water to the littorals.

Underwater Construction Team TWO improves the waterfront at NSF Diego Garcia

By Lt.j.g. Joshua Jepsen

Underwater Construction Team 2 Public Affairs

DIEGO GARCIA — U.S. Navy Seabee Divers assigned to Underwater Construction Team (UCT) TWO Construction Diving Detachment (CDD) BRAVO wrapped up multiple waterfront inspections, fleet mooring inspections, and assisting Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) with waterfront construction from March to June 2021.

CDD/B’s mission in Diego Garcia consisted of partnering with the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and NAVFAC EXWC supporting ongoing waterfront construction, fleet mooring inspections to include zinc anode replacement, and Hydro-Acoustic Data Acquisition System (HDAS) cables inspection.

Fleet mooring inspections are a continuing task for UCT TWO, as fleet moorings require an inspection every three years.

UCT TWO routinely inspects moorings throughout the Indo-Pacific, often partnering with mooring engineers at NAVFAC EXWC. These inspections require the divers to utilize specialized tools to measure individual chain links for any excessive wear.

Inspecting these moorings regularly ensures that each mooring maintains an operational condition, allowing fleet maneuver in a free and open Pacific.

CDD/B also completed inspection and maintenance on NSF Diego Garcia’s HDAS cables, visually inspecting the cable as well as replacing sacrificial zinc anodes, stabilization points, split pipe, and pad eyes. The cables often require maintenance from the change in tides as well as the consistent

Steelworker 1st Class Ethan Sobalvarro prepares to take measurements on fleet mooring chain after replacing sacrificial zinc anodes. (MC2 LUCAS JACKSON)

impact in the surf zone. The divers will work their way from shore, following the cable out to depths up to 130 feet seawater.

Underwater Construction Team TWO (UCT TWO), homeported out of Port Hueneme, CA, provides a capability for construction, inspection, repair, and maintenance

of ocean facilities in support of Naval and Marine Corps operations, to include repair of battle damage. UCT TWO maintains capability to support a Fleet Marine Force amphibious assault, subsequent combat service support ashore, and self-defense for their camp and facilities under construction.

In time of emergency or disaster, conduct disaster control and recovery operations.

U.S. Navy Support Facility Diego Garcia provides logistic support to operational forces forward deployed to the Indian Ocean and Arabian Gulf areas of responsibility in support of national policy objectives.

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 7

DoDEA from Page 1

technical education.

“For many of our new students, access to Advanced Placement courses may help them gain college credits,” said Kline. “Our world language classes will allow students who have started a foreign language program to continue, even if their parents or guardians move to a school that doesn’t offer that language. It can also be used to supplement a homeschool program. We think this will be a great benefit to all students who take advantage of this program.”

Kline further added that while the initial pilot program authorization is for four years, if there is enough interest, it may become a permanent part of the DVHS. “We look forward to developing partnerships with local schools who support our military-connected students,” Kline said.

Registration for the Expanded Eligibility Pilot Program is now open. Applications will be accepted until the program fills or the new school year starts, whichever comes first.

The DVHS is a fully accredited high school providing supplemental courses for DoDEA eligible high school students in grades 9-12.

DVHS averages 2,500 course registrations per semester, with the majority of students taking either one or two courses per semester.

For more information on the Expanded Eligibility Pilot Program, please visit: www.dodea.edu/dvs/e2p2.cfm.

(COURTESY GRAPHIC)

8 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 2 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

2

The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Community Submit YOUR events, news and photos

The Flagship welcomes submissions from our readers online.

Please submit events here: www.militarynews.com/users/admin/calendar/event/ Please submit news and photos here: www.militarynews.com/norfolk-navy-flagship/submit_news/

The Storyweavers (COURTESY PHOTO)

The Storyweavers Kickoff Return to Live Music Series at the Hampton History Museum July 21 From The City Of Hampton Hampton, Va—The Storyweavers return to the Hampton History Museum on July 21, 6:00 -8:00 pm for the first live and in-person Front Porch Music series concert since the group last performed there in February 2020.

In response to the pandemic, the museum halted in-person events, including its monthly Port Hampton Lecture Series and Front Porch Music Series in spring 2020.

The museum quickly adapted to offering these events, and a host of educational and interpretive presentations, virtually on Facebook, YouTube and their website. The videos have received nearly 570,000 views on Facebook alone.

“Having The Storyweavers perform the first live performance for the series is especially meaningful since they were the last concert that we had before shutdown,” says Museum promotions director Seamus McGrann, “It brings things full circle.”

In addition to the monthly third Wednesday concerts, the museum will begin presenting its Port Hampton Lecture Series

on the first Monday of each month (unless it is a holiday) starting on July 12. The lecture series will be announced at a later date. With the return to live programing, series events will no longer be streamed on Facebook Live, but will be videotaped to later upload onto Facebook, YouTube and the museum’s website hamptonhistorymuseum.org Front Porch Music Series Lineup for 2021: The Storyweavers Wednesday, July 21 This talented group, whose beautifully crafted songs connect to the audience, debuted their CD “Fallen Sparrow” at the museum in August 2018. Band members Sheela Fortner, Shari Strader, Beth Whyle and Jennifer McLaughlin blend Americana, folk, blues and funk into an original soulful sound with music inspired by their life stories.

American Sign Language performance artist Jennifer McLaughlin ensures that the message of The Storyweavers can be enjoyed by all, and ASL interpreter Annie James assists in moving between the two languages.

Bobby Blackhat Band

High School Juniors, Seniors Invited to Visit the Beach for Virginia Private College Week From Virginia Wesleyan University Virginia Beach, Va.—Rising high school juniors and seniors interested in attending Virginia Wesleyan University are invited to participate in this year’s Virginia Private College Week from July 26-31, hosted by the Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV).

Prospective traditional and transfer students who visit in person or virtually will receive a $1,000 VWU Visit Grant, applicable to tuition upon enrollment at Virginia Wesleyan (Fall 2021 or later). Guests will also be entered into a CICV drawing to win one of five $100 Amazon gift cards.

Virginia Wesleyan, along with 22 other member institutions, will offer in-person and virtual information sessions about admission, financial aid, and academic programs. Enrollment counselors will also address common myths about the cost of a private college education. Those who take part in a visit either in-person or virtually at three or more participating colleges will receive three application fee waivers.

In-person sessions at Virginia Wesleyan will be held July 26-30 (Monday-Friday) at 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. On Monday, July 26, there will also be an evening session at 7:00 p.m. On Saturday, July 31, there will be one session held at 9:00 a.m.

Virtual information sessions at Virginia Wesleyan will be held Tuesday, July 27 at 10:00 a.m. and Thursday, July 29, at 5:00 p.m. There will be an additional virtual session for those interested in the Batten Honors College on Wednesday, July 28, at 11:00 a.m.

Students are invited to come learn why VWU has repeatedly been chosen as one of the nation’s best by The Princeton Review, selected for inclusion in its 2021 edition of The Best 386 Colleges and featured in the Southeastern category of its 2021 Best Colleges: Region by Region. Register today at vwu.edu/vpcw.

(COURTESY PHOTO)

Wednesday, August 18 A harmonica player for over 40 years, Bobby BlackHat blends the influences of Chicago, Memphis, Piedmont, and Delta style blues along with a little Gospel into a toe tappin’, finger poppin’, hip shakin’ blues experience.

Bobby BlackHat Band is Bobby “BlackHat” Walters, on harmonica and vocals; Tom Euler on guitar and vocals; Brian Eubanks on bass; Michael Behlmar on drums; and Lucy Lawrence Kilpatrick on keyboards.

Brackish Water Jamboree Wednesday, September 15 Known for an eclectic mix of foot-stomping bluegrass, old-time folk and classic Americana featuring Dobro, fiddle, clawhammer banjo, upright bass, and even a washboard, Brackish Water Jamboree performs all original music (and a few staple standards) that echo classic country, upbeat Appalachian fiddle tunes, ragtime blues, the Bakersfield sound, and more.

MSG Acoustic Blues Trio Wednesday, October 20 An M.S.G. Acoustic Blues Trio concert is not just a performance; it is a complete

emotional journey from joy to tears. It’s an event where everyone can participate and share in the celebration of life.

M.S.G. is a roots-infused, Piedmont-steeped, yet thoroughly up-to-date group of widely and deeply talented musicians: Jackie Merritt, harmonica, guitar and bones; Miles Spicer, guitar; and Resa Gibbs, lead vocalist and percussionist. Their repertoire includes originals, traditional blues, gospel and ragtime tunes, as well as a number of surprising covers.

Jacob Vanko Wednesday, November 17 Singer/songwriter Jacob Vanko will released his first full-length album, “Ten Years,” with his band at the Hampton History Museum in September 2019. In describing his writing, Vanko says, “The songs are all derived from personal life stories, people who have been a big part of my life and people I briefly crossed paths with. These songs are like chapters of one book out of a 10 book series. Some are just written from the perspective of a third party fly on the wall watching a small slice of middle class life unfold. Some are built from feelings of redemption and ambition.

Others poured out in the middle of a quiet, lonely night.”

Tornado Bait Christmas Spectacular Wednesday, December 15 Back for their fourth year presenting a seasonal offering of mirth and merriment, the alt country “grunge-grass” elves of Tornado Bait are cooking up a musical treat featuring guest musicians and other entertainment.

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 3

Crysler from Page 1

works and multimedia content. Also accessible on web browsers, the site will include a virtual walkthrough, ensuring people can visit the exhibition and enjoy docent-led tours despite COVID-19 restrictions that may be in place.

A new documentary film, directed by Cheri Gaulke with cinematography by Tim Wilson and voiceovers by Emmy Award-winning actor and voice artist Alfre Woodard, will be released alongside the exhibition. Filmed at the Phillips Collection and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, Miss Alma Thomas: A Life in Color presents commentary by the exhibition co-curators along with scholars Tiffany E. Barber, Lisa E. Farrington, Melanee C. Harvey and Melissa Ho, as well as fine arts advisor Aaron Payne and Thomas’ grandnephew, Charles Thomas Lewis. With striking visuals and extended quotes from Thomas’ own perspective, the movie will enhance the themes of the exhibition and highlight the artist’s persistent search for beauty. The film is supported by a grant from Washington, D.C.’s Film Office (OCTFME).

More information is available at missalmathomas.com.

CATALOGUE A full-color, 336-page hardcover catalogue published by the organizing institutions and distributed by Yale University Press will feature a large collection of new scholarship by multiple contributors, incorporating an array of perspectives on Thomas’ life and art. Longform essays include Africana scholar Tiffany E. Barber on Thomas and performance and self-fashioning; historian Rebecca Bush on Thomas’ upbringing and family history in Jim-Crow-era Georgia; art historian Aruna D’Souza on Thomas’ significant place in the controversies surrounding the display of African American art in the 1960s and 1970s; curator Jonathan F. Walz on the importance of motion to Thomas’ art; and a team of conservators from the Smithsonian on the way Thomas resourcefully modified her materials and artistic processes to adapt to, and even incorporate, aging and impairment. Shorter essays by 11 interdisciplinary scholars will emphasize how close looking from diverse vantage points can reveal surprising and illuminating interpretations. These include an exploration of Thomas’ classroom activities, her church life, perception of her age and gender, the cultivation of her garden, the context of environmentalism, the international display of her work and more.

Essayists include Seth Feman, Jacqueline Francis, Kimberli Gant, Grey Gundaker, Michael D. Harris, Melanee C. Harvey, Amy M. Mooney, James Nisbet, Nell Irvin Painter and Rebecca VanDiver. The eclectic approach to the catalogue follows from Thomas’ own disregard for silos, borders and other arbitrary boundaries, echoing the artist’s insistence on collaboration and interdisciplinarity. Together, these insights add dimension and complexity to our understanding of Thomas and her world. The catalogue will be available for

purchase from the Chrysler Museum of Art and The Columbus Museum.

Programming Chrysler Museum Member Preview Day Thursday, July 8 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Free As a benefit of membership, all current Chrysler Museum members are invited to enjoy a first look at Alma W. Thomas: Everything Is Beautiful before the exhibition opens to the public. To register, visit chrysler.org.

Virtual Members’ Exhibition Preview Thursday, July 8 7 p.m. │ Free Tune in for an exclusive live interview and Q&A with exhibition curators Seth Feman, Ph.D., deputy director of art and interpretation and curator of photography of the Chrysler and Jonathan Frederick Walz, Ph.D., director of curatorial affairs and curator of American art of The Columbus Museum. After registering, Museum members may submit questions for the panelists in advance or during the webinar-style event. RSVP by Thursday, July 5. Media and VIP guests who wish to register should contact the Development Department by calling 757-333-6251 or emailing members@chrysler.org.

Exclusive Members-only Hours Fourth Wednesdays, July-September 5:30-9 p.m. │ Free Join us in the galleries after-hours for an exclusive private viewing of the exhibition. Members enjoy special access to the Alma W. Thomas exhibition and complimentary snacks. The 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. time slots include a docent-led tour. In-person. Face coverings will be required. Space is limited. To register, visit chrysler.org.

Camp Chrysler: Color Splash July 12-16 for ages 4-6 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. │ $90 for Museum members, $120 for non-members July 19-23 for ages 7-10 10 a.m.-4 p.m. │$180 for Museum Members, $225 for non-members Make a splash with us this summer in our Color Splash art camp! Take a closer look at the vibrant artwork on view in Alma W. Thomas: Everything Is Beautiful and create marvelous masterpieces inspired by the artist’s use of repetition, pattern, rhythm and color. Experiment with a variety of materials and a rainbow of colors while you paint, sculpt and weave a world of color for five art-filled days! In-person. Face coverings will be required. Space is limited. To register, visit chrysler.org.

Everything Is Beautiful! Bunny and Perry Morgan Family Day Saturday, July 24, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. │ Free Enjoy a day of fun-filled activities that will highlight the many facets of Alma W. Thomas’ life and interests. Explore several themes, including I Am Beautiful, My Community Is Beautiful and the World Is Beautiful. In-person. Reserving timed tickets at Chrysler.org is recommended. Sponsored by Dominion Energy.

Summer Teacher Institute Cultivating Alma’s Garden: Growing Ideas for the Classroom and Beyond July 27-29 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. │ Free

Alma Thomas (American, 1891–1978) Clown Marionette, ca. 1935 FABRIC, WOOD, PAINT, AND STRINGS (THE COLUMBUS MUSEUM)

K-12 educators can find inspiration for their students in the exhibition.

Join community-based artist and Old Dominion University education professor Natalia Pilato, Ph.D., for three days of in-person professional development.

Investigate the foundation of Alma W. Thomas’ work as an educator and artist and cultivate creative ideas for curriculum building through individual and collaborative artistic investigations. Learn to use visual art, puppetry, gardening and poetry in the classroom, and discover how to infuse your teaching practice with principles that Thomas embraced in her artmaking and more than 40 years of teaching. In-person.

Face coverings will be required. Space is limited to 20 participants. To register, visit chrysler.org.

An Evening with Ross Gay Thursday, Aug. 12 at 7 p.m.│ $5 for Museum members, $10 for non-members Join us for an evening with renowned poet Ross Gay, the author of four books, including Be Holding: A Poem and The Book of Delights. Gay will give a reading of one of his works, and discuss poetry, art, and the work of Alma Thomas with Seth Feman, Ph.D., the deputy director

of art and interpretation and curator of photography. The event will be virtual. To register, visit chrysler.org. Only one registration is required per device. The Zoom link will be sent on the day of the event.

John Wilmerding Symposium on American Art and Community Celebration Wednesday-Thursday, Sept. 22-23 (virtual symposium) Free Saturday-Sunday, Sept. 25-26 (virtual community activities) Free Celebrate the 130th anniversary of Alma W. Thomas’s birthday with the National Gallery of Art. Join us for a two-day virtual symposium exploring Thomas’ life in depth, with particular focus on her place in the artistic world of the nation’s capital. Participants include the exhibition co-curators; painters, poets and professors; DC-based curators and scholars; garden and church historians; and several special guests. The Community Celebration extends throughout the weekend with art-making activities inspired by Thomas’ diverse creative interests. Made possible by a grant from the Alice L. Walton Foundation. Free.

Webinar registration is required. Visit nga.gov for more information.

4 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Food

Blackened Salmon Sliders with Pickled Beet Relish (COURTESY PHOTO)

A Perfect Pairing for Summer Supper From Family Features

Few moments make summers quite as special as family meals, whether you’re soaking up the sun’s rays on the patio or beating the heat at the dining room table.

You can make evenings the highlight of the day with loved ones by centering dinner around the flavors of the season.

Fish, for example, is a popular choice for many with its lighter texture and a flavor profile that’s easily paired with a variety of veggies. These Blackened Salmon Sliders with Pickled Beet Relish can feed a family in a fun, handheld way with Aunt Nellie’s Pickled Beets serving as a perfect partner for the fish fillets.

No summer dinner is complete without a side dish like this BLT Potato Salad. A trio of classic warm-weather ingredients — bacon, lettuce, tomato — blend together with READ German Potato Salad and a homemade vinegar-based dressing for a delightful spin on a family favorite.

To find more summer-inspired meal ideas perfect for sharing with family and friends, visit readsalads.com and auntnellies.com.

Blackened Salmon Sliders with Pickled Beet Relish Recipe courtesy of tarateaspoon.com Prep time: 40 minutes Yield: 12 sliders (2 per serving) 4 single-serve cups Aunt Nellie’s Diced Pickled Beets 1 finely chopped scallion (about 2 table-

BLT Potato Salad (COURTESY PHOTO)

spoons) ½ cup shredded radishes 1 cup plain Greek yogurt ½ cup finely crumbled feta cheese 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley 2 teaspoons chopped oregano

¼ teaspoon kosher salt, plus additional, to taste, divided 1 pinch ground black pepper 2 pounds salmon fillets, skinless 3 tablespoons blackened seasoning 2 tablespoons olive oil

A Fruity Sprinkle Surprise

By Culinary.net To kids, birthday parties are a big deal and only happen once a year. From the decorations to their friends and all the sweet, delicious treats to devour, it can be an overwhelming amount of excitement and awe.

They receive gifts, get to have fun with their friends and family, and get to snack on treats they typically don’t have on a regular basis. This is part of what makes birthdays so fun.

It can be a lot of pressure for parents, though. You want everything to be perfect and fall in line with expectations, especially when it comes to the food and treats served to everyone that day.

At the next party you’re hosting, try this delightful Fruity Sprinkles Smoothie that fits the theme for nearly any colorful birthday bash.

It’s made with frozen blueberries, frozen strawberries and frozen mango for a healthier alternative to sugar-filled birthday cake.

Topped with fluffy, fun whipped cream and mini sprinkles, it still provides a sweet, festive treat. Plus, this smoothie can be made in a matter of minutes using only one kitchen appliance for easy clean up.

To make it, blend frozen blueberries, frozen strawberries, frozen mango, milk and yogurt until well combined.

Pour the mixture into four smoothie glasses and garnish each with whipped cream and sprinkles to add some extra color.

It’s that easy to make and even better to enjoy while watching your kid make wonderful memories with friends and family.

Find more fun celebration recipes at Culinary.net.

If you made this recipe at home, use #MyCulinaryConnection on your favorite social network to share your work.

Fruity Sprinkles Smoothie Servings: 4 1cup frozen blueberries 2cups frozen strawberries 1cup frozen mango 1 ½cups milk 1carton (6 ounces) vanilla yogurt whipped cream sprinkles In blender, blend blueberries, strawberries, mango, milk and yogurt until combined.

Pour smoothie into four glasses. Garnish with whipped cream and sprinkles.

Fruity Sprinkles Smoothie (COURTESY PHOTO)

12 slider buns 1 cup baby arugula Drain beets well. In medium bowl, combine diced beets, scallions and radishes.

Set aside.

In small bowl, combine yogurt, feta, parsley and oregano. Stir in ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper. Set aside.

Cut salmon into 12 roughly 2 ½-inch squares, about ½-inch thick. Slice thick parts of fillets in half to make thinner, if needed.

Sprinkle fillets with salt, to taste, on both sides. Sprinkle evenly with blackened seasoning until well coated.

Heat nonstick skillet or cast-iron pan over medium heat and add oil. Add salmon, in batches if needed, and cook, turning once, until salmon is crisped and almost cooked through, about 1 ½ minutes per side. Remove and let rest.

Spread each slider bun with about 1 tablespoon yogurt sauce. Layer arugula, salmon and beet relish on each slider and serve.

BLT Potato Salad Recipe courtesy of eazypeazymealz.com Prep time: 20 minutes Servings: 4 1 can (15 ounces) READ German Potato Salad 3 Roma tomatoes, diced ¼ cup finely diced red onion 2 cups baby arugula 6 slices crisp-cooked bacon, crumbled Dressing: ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar 3 tablespoons olive oil ¾ teaspoon kosher salt ½ teaspoon garlic powder ¼ teaspoon black pepper Place potato salad in large bowl. Gently stir in diced tomatoes and onion.

Add arugula; stir gently to combine.

Sprinkle with crumbled bacon.

To make dressing: In bowl, combine apple cider vinegar, olive oil, salt, garlic powder and black pepper. Drizzle over potato salad to serve.

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 5

Health

U.S. Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Orbie VanCurine, a native of Mansfield, Texas, with Combat Logistics Battalion, prepares a COVID-19 vaccine during the opening of the state-run, federallysupported Center City Community Vaccination Center at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia on March 3, 2021. (MARINE CORPS 1ST LT. KEVIN STAPLETON).

COVID vaccinations rise — but so do concerns of the Delta variant

By Janet A. Aker

Mhs Communications

The active-duty military community is likely to soon hit its target of a 70% coronavirus vaccination rate for troops across the force, military health officials said.

Yet the rising vaccination rates come at a time of renewed concern about COVID-19 as a new strain of the virus - the so-called Delta variant - poses new risks for unvaccinated populations both inside and outside the military.

“More than 68% of active-duty service members have received at least one dose. We project to hit the 70% goal by early- to mid-July,” said Max Rose, the outgoing senior advisor to the Secretary of Defense for COVID-19.

Since the COVID-19 vaccines have become available last year, the Department of Defense has administered 7.2 million total doses across the DOD population.

The DOD has also conducted a full strategic review of all COVID-19 policy documents “to ensure they reflect current medical science from public health officials, data scientists and

laboratories and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” Rose said when speaking to reporters at the Pentagon on June 30.

Rose offered good news for parents of children who attend schools run by the Department of Defense Education Activity, or DoDEA. “In the DODEA school system, across the Pacific, Americas and in Europe, roughly three-quarters of our teachers and school staff are vaccinated, making it possible to safely reopen all schools and child development centers for in-person learning,” he said.

Dr. Terry Adirim, acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, said that, as a pediatrician, she is pleased to report that military families overseas have accepted the vaccines “readily, with 77.4% of 16-17-year olds vaccinated and 62.3% of 12-15 year olds.”

The vaccines are currently authorized and proven safe for all children ages 12 and over.

The benefits of the vaccines are becoming more urgent as military health officials begin to document the spread of the Delta variant, a mutation of the original coronavirus that is

significantly more contagious and can increase the risk of severe disease or hospitalization.

The Delta variant now accounts for about one in five COVID-19 cases in the U.S, and is more likely to be contracted by younger age groups who are not vaccinated.

The DOD is “particularly concerned about the impact of the Delta variant on our unvaccinated population or partially vaccinated personnel and its potential spread in installations that are located in parts of the country with low vaccination rates,” Adirim said.

The best way to prevent infection by the Delta variant of the SARS-CoV-19 virus is to get vaccinated, Adirim emphasized.

“We know that one dose of the mRNA vaccines [Pfizer/BioNTech and Modern] is only 30% effective, whereas two are 88% effective,” she said.

Health Protection Conditions, the alert level at military installations, “may change in the future based on outbreaks that result from the Delta variant,” she added.

“Increasing rates of COVID-19 infection in a local community could lead a local

commander to change the HPCON level,” she said.

Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Ronald Place, director of the Defense Health Agency, said the military so far is seeing the Delta variant in small numbers: “one or two or maybe three at one location.”

Military health officials continue to confront concerns about vaccine hesitancy among military personnel, their families, retirees, and beneficiaries, Adirim explained.

“We’ve centered our vaccination campaign around the principles of increasing accessibility to vaccines, providing opportunities for education, leveraging active-duty personnel polices to promote vaccination, and ensuring engagement at the lowest level to acknowledge and address individual concerns,” Adirim said at the June 30 press briefing.

The DOD has performed more than 1.26 million genomic sequencing tests for SARSCoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

“We’ve continued to bolster our testing foundation to ensure that this tool of public health surveillance and force protection is here to stay at our installations across the globe, to include the latest genomic sequencing,” Rose said.

With genomic sequencing, the military can track the incidence of all COVID-19 variants, from the Alpha variant, which is predominant in the United Kingdom, to the Delta variant, which is expected to become the dominant strain of COVID-19 in the U.S. in a matter of weeks.

However, genomic sequencing of COVID19 cases takes about two weeks, so the current numbers on the Delta variant in the MHS may be lagging.

Delivering Readiness: The Evolution of TRICARE

By TRICARE.mil Staff Ever wonder about the people behind the curtain at TRICARE? Maybe you imagine policy gurus or bureaucrats with little connection to military service. If so, you may be surprised to learn that’s not true. The halls of the Defense Health Agency Headquarters are filled with men and women in uniform, military retirees, dedicated civil servants, and contractors. They understand and care about the mission and the people they serve.

While the TRICARE benefit is always evolving, the mission never does. From day one, the mission is to deliver exceptional medical and dental care to eligible beneficiaries and their families.

Mark Ellis, chief of the Policy and Programs section of the TRICARE Health Plan at the Defense Health Agency, understands this contrast between evolving while staying true to an unwavering mission. In fact, he lives it.

In 1976, Ellis enlisted in the Air Force Medical Service. Throughout his military career, he served in a variety of roles. He worked in hospitals as a medical support person and on aircrafts as an aerial refueling specialist during the Cold War. He rose through the ranks, earning a commission in the Air Force Medical Service Corps. TRICARE came into existence during his time in the medical service.

After almost 23 years of active military service, he retired in August 2001, days before 9/11. As a contractor working for TRICARE on that day, he stood at his office window. He watched the smoke billowing from the Pentagon with renewed resolve. Years later, Ellis became a civil servant, culminating with his current role as chief of the Policy and Programs section.

“My military service informs what I bring to policymaking at TRICARE,” said Ellis. “We still do what we’ve always done - support the Medically Ready Force, Ready Medical Force.

We deliver a high-quality medical and dental

benefit to eligible beneficiaries and their family members.”

During his long career with the Military Health System (MHS), Ellis witnessed the evolution of the military medical benefit from the basic CHAMPUS program to the TRICARE triple option (Prime, Standard, and Extra). He also served throughout the creation of new TRICARE programs, like TRICARE Reserve Select TRICARE Retired Reserve. These two health plans provide TRICARE coverage for Reserve Component members and their families. He led the MHS’s efforts to implement the TRICARE Young Adult plan. And he led the recent transition from TRICARE Standard and TRICARE Extra to TRICARE Select Starting on January 1, 2018, TRICARE Select replaces TRICARE Standard and Extra.

TRICARE Select is a self-managed, preferred provider network plan. TRICARE Select is a fee-for-service option in the United States that allows you to get care from any TRICARE-authorized provider. Enrollment is required to participate. TRICARE Select coverage.

But Ellis regards the creation of TRICARE For Life (TFL) in 2001, TRICARE’s Medicare wraparound coverage, as the key TRICARE transformation during his career.

“Before TFL, military retirees lost all TRICARE coverage when they became entitled to Medicare due to age or disability,” said Ellis. “Under TFL, you pay your Medicare Part B premiums, as most Americans must do. Then TFL provides the full TRICARE plan and pharmacy coverage as your free Medicare-wraparound coverage, without premiums or enrollment fees. Personally, my wife and I are more than happy to pay our Medicare Part B premium as TFL provides such a rich benefit.”

Ellis also worked to develop TRICARE Open Season. Open season is the annual period each fall when you can change or enroll in a health plan. During the enrollment period, you can

TRICARE benefits have continued to evolve, but the mission of‘delivering exceptional medical and dental care to eligible beneficiaries and their families’ remains (COURTESY PHOTO).

adjust your health coverage for the upcoming year.

For example, you may decide you value having a choice of provider. You understand your out-of-pocket costs and decide TRICARE Select will serve you best. If you want a primary care manager to oversee your care, TRICARE Prime may be the option for you.

“These options help you take command of your health by choosing the TRICARE plan that best meets your family’s health care needs,” said Ellis.

Choices help you take charge of your own health benefit. Beyond plan options, TRICARE also offers unparalleled savings.

“Compared to the Affordable Care Act and the average out-of-pocket costs for commercial health plans, TRICARE offers incredi-

ble value,” said Ellis. “There’s no comparison to civilian plans, even when you adjust for the sacrifices that military families make. Congress provides - and the Military Health System delivers - an attractive health care benefit under the TRICARE program.”

Highly regulated, ever-changing, and overseen by people who understand they serve those who serve. Those people understand the value of the benefit. They believe in its evolution.

“What a transformation that I’ve seen since the 70s,” said Ellis, who retires from civil service next month. “From 1976 to today, I’ve seen nothing but change. And I know for sure that TRICARE will continue to evolve to support readiness and deliver an unparalleled health care benefit for those who serve and have served, and their family members.”

6 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021

Dogs, Cats, Other Pets GOLDEN RETRIEVER 5 AKC registered puppies, 8 wks. $700. Call: 252-336-2666

Garage/Yard Sales, etc.

VIRGINIA BEACH Estate Sale.

3721 Summer Pl. Sat 7/10 & Sun 7/11, 8am-2pm. Rain or Shine.

Dogs, Cats, Other Pets AKC FULL REGISTRATION GERMAN SHEPHERD PUPPIES

Room For Rent

Announcements FREE PICK UP Of your broken or unwanted lawn equipment. Call 757-412-5664.

GARAGE SALE Huge moving sale, including furniture, 2 homes, 7/9-10, rain date 7/16-7/17. 504 Ruby Ct, Chesapeake

Subscribe to The Pilot today.

PUBLIC NOTICE Little Vinny’s Pizza Inc. The above establishment is applying for VA (ABC) License to sell Alcoholic Beverages Early home delivery. 757-446-9000 or PilotOnline.com

Travel/Camping Trailers

Misc. Merchandise For Sale

Fridays in The Pilot

757-446-9000 PilotOnline.com

Akc full registration Papers /1st shots and Deworming Amazing temperaments, Great Mittlewest lineage! Call or Text 757737-0135 1 boy 3 girls available!! Ready to go July 23rd~ $800.00

ENGLISH SETTER PUPPIES Whelped 05/29/21 Papered. $500 Thomas 252-337-5981 FRENCH BULLDOGS AKC/CKC registration available.

Ready 7/13, $3,000. 757-701-0199

NORFOLK Furn rm. Park Place area. Drug free.

No pets. $125/wkly+dep 757-578-6869

Jump start your day.

Early home delivery

CONSIGNMENTS WANTED! Let us clean, sell, & finance your RV. Snyders RV 499-8000.

Motorcycles and ATVs 2012 HARLEY DAVIDSON 1200 SPORTSTER MODEL 48 1600 actual miles, Like New Condition. Must See $7500 757-373-5707

757-446-9000 • PilotOnline.com Early home delivery. 757-446-9000 or PilotOnline.com

757.622.1455 | placeanad.pilotonline.com Hauling (A) FAMILY TRASH MAN-HOUSEHOLD, Demo inside & out, construction sites, dumpster drop off, backhoe work. We haul it all! 20 yrs. exp., lic & ins. 485-1414

Estate Sales

Concrete/Asphalt

B & J MOVING Reasonable Rates, Licensed & Insured. bandjmoving.com 757-576-1290

Home/Office Cleaning S & H ENTERPRISE 20 YRS. Concrete Exp. All types of concrete work driveways, stamped & exposed.

We accept credit cards. 757-652-4050. www.shabazznva.com

SWEET & DISCREET CLEANING LLC offers home, office, & move in/out cleanings. Individually owned with no time limit or multiple cleaning crews! Call (757) 828-4588

Home Improvements ADDITIONS, SUNROOMS, ROOFS, Decks, more. Member BBB. 757-986-3777. www.builderscorporation.com AIR DUCT CLEANING UNIVERSAL DUCT CLEANING FREE INSPECTIONS MEMBER BBB. 757-502-0200 BRICK & STONE REPAIRS Steps, Walls, Foundations, etc. Virginia Beach Native.

Masonry Contract. 40+ yrs Known As Stone Smith USA. Semi-Retired - A Legend In His Own Mind! Earl Smith 757-2700578. Please Leave Message.

You Won’t Find A Better Man!

Subscribe to The Virginian-Pilot today.

Call 757-446-9000 or go to PilotOnline.com

YOUR PERFECT

JOB

IS WAITING

FRANK’S SIDING & REPAIRS Repairing Siding & Trim. Small jobs.

Lic/Ins. Low Prices. BBB A+ RATING 757-227-8964 PEST/TERMITE CONTROL Universal Pest & Termite.

FREE INSPECTIONS. 757-502-0200.

(Mention This Ad and Get $25 Off)

Lawn and Tree Service GODWIN TREE SERVICE 25yrs. Trimming, Topping, total removal. Free est. Winter Pandemic Discount; Lic’d & Ins’d 757-2371285 or 757-816-3759 BBB Member

Early home delivery. 757-446-9000 or PilotOnline.com

Subscribe to The Virginian-Pilot today.

Call 757-446-9000 or go to PilotOnline.com

LANDSCAPE SPECIALIST For all your landscaping and lawn care needs give us a call.

Renovations, monthly maintenance, mulching, shrub trimming. Buddy 757-535-0928 YARD CLEAN UP - GRASS CUTTING, WOOD FENCE REPAIR & BUSHES Weed Eating, Blowing, Reasonable prices.

Call 757-477-2158

PRIVATE SECURITY SERVICES VA. DCJS: 11-17774 Credentialed, Insured, & Licensed; RAVEN ELITE PROTECTION LLC specializes in personal protection, the goal is to mitigate the risk before an unfortunate event occurs.

Access the website at https://raveneliteprotection.com to learn more.

Professional Services

“Fear Nevermore” BUYING WATCHMAKER ITEMS Private collector buying old Pocket & Wrist Watches in any condition. Buying Watch Parts, Watch Tools and anything related to the trade. 30 Year Member NAWCC, References Available, Please Call David 314-779-7380 I am Vaccinated Specializing in Large Collections & High Value Accumulations. Paying Cash

Roofing CALVIN’S ROOFING REPAIR LLC Specializes in roofing repair, also guttering, Free estimates, roofing of all types, reasonable prices, Shingles, metal, slate, rubber.

Over 30 yrs -business, BBB 757-377-2933

ROOF REPAIR Shingles, tar, rubber, slate, metal, asbestos removal. 757-718-1072

Stop wasting time searching for jobs. Find the right jobs with tribune publishing recruitment services.

We work hard to make your job search easy. With our expansive network of distinguished employers from coast to coast and advanced job matching technology, you’ll find opportunities that match your skills, your personality and your life.

Search jobs. Post your resume.

Stand out from the crowd.

jobs.pilotonline.com

www.flagshipnews.com | The Flagship | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021 7 Autos for Sale

Trucks and SUVs

TOYOTA 2002 CELICA

JEEP 1998 GRAND CHEROKEE

Newly inspected and registered. Fairly low mileage. Good tires. Good running condition. $3000.00 or best offer (757) 348-6374

Classic, Antique Cars We will purchase your collectible, classic, late model autos, we will come to you. Call 757-675-0288.

4 Spd, Dual Exhaust, Good condition, $5995. Call 757-495-7960

5.9 Limited 178,000mi. Two-owner.

Stone White / Agate. Inspected. $5,000 OBO. Every option. First of the power SUVs. 4x4 of the Year 1998. Includes large parts list. Tom Harleman (757) 473-8468 harlemantg@verizon. net Virginia Beach

Trucks and SUVs

Wanted Automotive

FORD 2001 EXPLORER

ABSOLUTELY ABLY ACQUIRING AUTOS All Makes & Models, Best Price Paid!!

FREE TOWING. 757-749-8035

GMC 2016 YUKON

AUTOS ACCEPTED-ANY YEAR Make or Model. Top Dollar, Fast, Free Towing. 757-737-2465, 252-232-9192

VOLKSWAGEN 1973 BEETLE

Limited. Loaded, 1 owner, 167k miles, excellent condition, serviced regularly. $5000 Call: 757-685-3688 Denali white diamond with beige leather, 42,700 miles, has original window sticker, loaded, new tires, original owner exc condition $44,600 757-560-1459

JEEP 1998 GRAND CHEROKEE

5.9 Limited. 86,000mi. Three-owner.

Stone White / Agate. Inspected. $7,500 OBO. Every option. First of the power SUVs. 4x4 of the Year 1998. Enhanced performance and sound systems. Tom Harleman (757) 473-8468 harlemantg@verizon.net Virginia Beach

Boats & Watercraft USED TRAILER SALE!!!

OVER 100 Avail. For Boats 12’-38’ BUDGET BOATS: (757) 543 -7595

Good news.

Early home delivery.

757-446-9000 PilotOnline.com

Shop smart.

Save big! Sunday

Don’t pay full price!

With The Virginian-Pilot’s coupons and sales inserts, shop smart and save big every week!

(and every day).

Early home delivery.

Subscribe to The Virginian-Pilot today.

Call 757-446-9000 or go to PilotOnline.com

757-446-9000 or PilotOnline.com

Fun & Games

Sudoku

CryptoQuip

Last week’s CryptoQuip answer

If somebody totally runs out of breath mints, could you say he’s un-Cert-ified?

LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS

Religious Serivices For your installation’s religious service times visit www.flagshipnews.com⁄ base_information⁄ religious_services

8 The Flagship | www.flagshipnews.com | Section 3 | Thursday, July 8, 2021