Recruiter lives the dream to help others create their own

ByPettyOfficer2ndClass

AustinBreum

Commander, Navy Recruiting Command

DENVER, Colo.

“Living the Dream,” is a phrase that gets thrown around quite often ForoneNavypettyofficer heactually islivingthedream,itjustwasn’tinitiallyhis

Personnel Specialist 2nd Class Gerard Joseph Portez chose to fulfill his father’s dreamwhenhedecidedtojointhemilitary Portezwasinhisthirdyearofcollegewhen afriendaskedifhewantedtojointheNavy

That’s when he remembered his father’s dreamandhowhehadalwaysbeeninspired bymenandwomenwhoweartheuniform.

“MyfatheralwayswantedtojointhemilitarywhenhewasinthePhilippines,butjust neverhadtheopportunity,”saidPortez.

Portez was born and raised in Laguna, Philippines, along with his younger sister When he was 15 years old, his family immigratedtotheUnitedStates

“I did not know what life would be like,” saidPortez.

Ultimately Los Angeles became his home He attended, and graduated from, St Genevieve High School, where he also participatedinhip-hopdance Althoughhe thoughtaboutjoiningthemilitaryafterhigh school, he felt he didn’t have the courage to push through and went to college instead. Afterhisthirdyear,hewastiredofperforming the same routines every day, and after talkingwithafriend,herealizedhewanted to do something bigger than himselfand be able to help his parents financially It was that conversation that changed his life In an instant he was on his way to fulfilling his father’s dream, while creating a life he himselfhadonlydreamedof

Portez’s first duty station was on board the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Chosin (CG 65), homeported in San Diego. After his tour was complete hewalkedacrossthepiertoanotherTiconderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS CapeSt George(CG71).Bytheendofthose back-to-backtours,Portezhadadvancedto pettyofficersecondclass

“I didn’t get a chance to go to any ports becausebothshipswereintheyardsinEverett, Washington, but I worked hard, which helped me advance during my first enlistment,”saidPortez

Well on his way toward petty officer first class Portez’slong-termgoalistobecomean officer and retire with thirty years of naval service.

“It wasn’t until I joined the Navy that I realized what the Navy could do for me, such as help me become financially stable and continue to go to college without any loansordebts,”saidPortez

It was afterhissecondtouron aship that Portezdecidedtobecomearecruiter

ByJosephClark

D)D News

Three words are often used to succinctly describethetightbondbetweentheU.S.and SouthKorea:Wegotogether

Thephrasehaslongheldspecialmeaning on the Korean Peninsula, where more than 28,000U.S.servicememberscurrentlyserve alongsidetheirKoreanallies

Now, seven decades into the alliance, the three words carry added significance “We go together denotes a durable partnership between the two nations and a pledge to continue to stand together in the face of pressingchallenges

“[O]ver the past seven decades, our alliancehasgrownstrongerandmorecapable, and the cooperation between our people, our commitment to one another has grown deeper across every aspect of our partnership,” President Joe Biden said in April as hewelcomedSouthKoreanPresidentYoon Suk Yeol to the White House for an official state visit marking the 70th anniversary of thealliance

Bidensaidthetried-and-truepartnership offers proof of a “future filled with unimaginableopportunityandendlesspossibility.”

“Nothing nothing isbeyondourabilitytoreachwhenournationsandourpeople standunited,”hesaid.“Wehaveproventhat timeandagainoverthelast70years.

The alliance traces its roots to the devastationcausedbytheKoreanWar.

On June 25,1950, North Korean troops, backed by China and the Soviet Union, stormed across the 38th parallel, the line of demarcation separating Republic of Korea to the South and the Democratic People’s RepublicofKoreatotheNorth.

Concerned by the brazen communist aggression, the United Nations Security Council authorized, for the first time, the formation of a multi-national force to repel furtherinvasionfromthenorth.

TheU.S.providedmostofthetroopsthat made up the multinational U.N. Command. The U.S. Army deployed a total of eight divisions to the peninsula throughout the 37-monthwar.

More than 33,000 U.S. troops were killed and103,000woundedinfightingthatlasted until the July 27, 1953, Korean Armistice, which ceased hostilities and established a DemilitarizedZonealongthe38thparallel.

Yoon honored those American’s who sacrificedtheirlivesindefenseoftheKorean people as he spoke on the sun-drenched South Lawn in April during his official arrivalceremonyattheWhiteHouse

“Whydidtheysacrificetheirlivesforthis faraway country and for the people they nevermet?Thatwasforonenoblecause:to defendfreedom,”Yoonsaid.

“The ROK-U.S. alliance was forged in bloodasaresultofourfightforfreedom,”he said.“TheROK-U.S.allianceisnotatransactionalrelationship;itdoesnotoperateforthe sakeofmereinterest TheROK-U.S.alliance isanallianceofvalues,standingtogetherto safeguardtheuniversalvalueoffreedom.”

Despite the cessation of hostilities between North and South Korea brought

“There are so many opportunities in the Navy such as travel, medical and tuition assistance for us,” said Portez. “I became a recruiter to offer these same opportunities topeopleinourcommunitytobetterthemselves. Whether they want to go to college now,later,orpasstheopportunityforcollege onto their kids, I want them to be able to havethatchoice.”

Since being a recruiter, Portez has returned to college to complete his education. He is currently attending Thomas Edison University where he is 18 credits away from earning his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology.Onceheisfinishedwithhistour of recruiting, Portez is looking forward to returning to the fleet in Japan, hitting the deckplateswithhisshipmates,andgoingon deploymentstoseevariousportsaroundthe world. In the meantime, Portez is a part of theFilipinoAmericanCommunityofColorado and volunteers with Team Rubicon, whichisanorganizationknowntoColorado thathelpswithperformingwildfiremitigationanddisasterresponses

Portezsaidhisfavoritepartaboutrecruiting is how he can relate to an applicant as he too once walked through the very same door asking for information Now, he is the personontheothersideofthetablehelping anapplicantseethebenefitsandopportunitiestheNavycanprovide

“Initially,itwashardformetobeinfront of people and talk but remembering how it wasformebeforeIjoinedhelpedmerelate better with the applicant,” said Portez. “I work in a community that is very similar to theoneIgrewupin.Itispersonalformeto dothebestjobpossible.”

His hard work and love of the Navy have earned him a Six Shooter award, sourcer of themonthforApril&May2023andaNavy Achievement Medal as a monthly incentive. Additionally, his dedication and leadership led his station to earning Station of theMonthforApril2023

“I am grateful to the Navy for the opportunity to work with people that are willing to raise their hand and perform the oath of enlistment just like I did at one point, said Portez.

Portez may not be living THE dream, but heisredefiningwhatitmeanstolivehisown.

NTAG Rocky Mountain encompasses the states of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, and parts of Idaho, Nebraska, Kansas, and Arizona,providingNavyRecruitingservices frommorethan30dispersedoffices

Navy Recruiting Command consists of a commandheadquarters twoNavyRecruiting Regions and 26 Navy Talent Acquisition Groups that serve more than 1,000 recruiting stations across the world. Their combinedgoalistoattractthehighestqualitycandidatestoassuretheongoingsuccess ofAmerica’sNavy on by the 1953 armistice a peace treaty has neverbeensigned.

Following the armistice, the U.S. and SouthKoreasignedaMutualDefenseTreaty which, to this day, underpins the alliance betweenthetwocountries.

Under the treaty, the U.S. committed to aidingSouthKoreaintheeventofanattack and has maintained a continuous presence of land, air and sea forces on the peninsula capable of responding to North Korean aggression.

Todate,theU.S.remainsasSouthKorea’s foremostdefensepartnerandthetwocountries have for years completed large-scale, combined exercises aimed at enhancing joint operability and deterring provocation intheregion.

SouthKoreahasalsobeenakeyU.S.partner in conflicts abroad deploying troops in support of U.S.-led efforts in Vietnam, Iraq andAfghanistan SouthKoreaholdsMajorNon-NATOAlly status with the U.S., entitling them certain benefitsintermsoftradeandsecuritycooperation.

In 1978, the two countries formed the CombinedForcesCommandwhichformalized the U.S. and South Korean joint planning staff developed in the late 1960s as an adjunct to the United Nations Command andUnitedStatesForcesKorea.

The CFC serves as the warfighting headquarterswithoperationalcontrolovermore than600,000servicemembersrepresenting both nations The command stands ready to provide coordinated defense through combined air, ground and naval forces on the peninsula should it come under attack fromthenorth.

Since its formation, CFC has conducted majorfieldtrainingandcommandpostexercises including Ulchi Freedom Guardian an annual drill that trains CFC personnel through state-of-the-art wargame simulations. The U.S. and South Korean joint drills have also included combined live-fire exercises that mobilize thousands of U.S. and SouthKoreantroopsandhundredsofweaponssystems In a joint communique issued by U.S. SecretaryofDefenseLloydJ.AustinIIIand SouthKoreanMinisterofNationalDefense Lee Jong-Sup following the 54th Security Consultative Meeting between the U.S. and South Korea, the two sides pledged to continue enhancing their combined exercisestostrengthenthealliance’sreadinessin thefaceofincreasingprovocationbyNorth Korea. “We still face ongoing challenges from North Korea, including its dangerous and destabilizing missile testing program, and from others who would undermine the rules-basedinternationalorder,”Austinsaid in April as he welcomed Yoon to the PentagonduringhisvisittoWashington.

AustinunderscoredthattheU.S.commit-

menttoSouthKorearemains“ironclad.”

“The ROK and the United States have a sharedvisionrootedinfreedom,democracy and the rule of law,” he said “Our alliance standsasapillarofafreeandopenIndo-Pacific and I’m confident that we will move forward together, and I look forward to charting an ambitious path to advance our sharedprioritiesintheIndo-Pacific.

During,Yoon’slatestvisittoWashington thetwocountriesoutlinednewstepsaimed at bolstering the longstanding U.S.-South KoreandefenseallianceinthefaceofgrowingnuclearthreatsposedbyNorthKorea.

Under the newly unveiled “Washington Declaration,” the two countries have committed to engaging in deeper dialogue and information sharing efforts and announced the establishment of a nuclear consultative group to strengthen nuclear deterrenceeffortsontheKoreanPeninsula.

Biden called the declaration a “prudent step” toward deterrence and in response to NorthKorea’sadvancingnuclearthreatand a symbol of the U.S. unwavering commitmenttoSouthKorea.

“As our troops say, who still proudly serve together in the ROK to this day: ‘We gotogether’, BidensaidontheSouthLawn. “MaywecontinuethatrefrainoftheRepublicofKoreaandtheUnitedStatesforallthe daysahead.”