61st year, No. 43
Serving the NATO, Naples and Gaeta Military Community in Italy
Friday, November 11, 2016
2016 Battle for the Ballots at Support Site
Ombudsman: Helping Military Families Cope with the Unknown By Rebecca Hernandez AFN Family Ombudsman Christopher Kasparek, as “Uncle Sam” leads activities as Sailors and their family members participate in an MWR and USO sponsored “Battle for the Ballots” event at Support Site Village Forum November 8, 2016. There were fictional voting booths including choices like Hot Dogs or Tacos, in addition to Navy Band music, food and beverage sales, games, prizes and giveaways. Photo by PO1 Daniel Barker
USO TOURS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Service members are no stranger to hardship and sacrifice. American military members choose to serve their country and in doing so give up many of the things that make life comfortable and stable … but what about their family members? As military families overseas, we have all experienced the separation, confusion and disorientation that come with moving to a new country. Besides the language barrier, which is difficult enough, we deal with the loss of our support systems while we make new friends and begin to familiarize ourselves with our new surroundings. Many of us have heard the expression “military family.” What is a military family really? It is a group of strangers that come together to encourage and support each other because we are all in the same boat … if not literally, then figuratively. But as we all know, meeting people takes time. Who can we turn to when we don’t know anyone? To top it off, service members can deploy often which leaves families and spouses alone to deal with the stress of moving to a new place. In the old Navy, there was a well-known saying “You weren’t issued a family with your sea bag.” Since then – thankfully – the Navy has made huge strides in recognizing the importance of a happy home life for their sailors, which inevitably means that their family’s well being is just as important as their own.
WORD SEARCH / COLOR ME 14
OMBUDSMAN
Wildcats Volleyball Teams Place at European Championships By Brenda Dye
Ladies Win Third Place The Lady Wildcats traveled 27 hours, by bus, to Ramstein, Germany, to compete in the European Volleyball Championships last week, and they didn’t leave emptyhanded. Ever since Naples High School was moved up to Division I in 2014, they continually prove that even though they are one of the smallest schools in the division, they are tough competitors who won’t go down without a fight. New rules during pool-play made it difficult to calculate exactly which teams would advance into the semi-finals until all the games were finished on Friday afternoon. Naples advanced and faced the undefeated Stuttgart Panthers in the semi-finals Friday night. In a game where the winner takes the best three out of five sets, the Wildcats were the definite underdogs, and they surprised the Panthers when they beat them in the second set. Naples lost the next two sets and Stuttgart advanced to the finals against Ramstein, while Naples faced Laken-
heath on Saturday for third place. The Wildcats beat the Lancers and finished as the Division I third place winners, while Ramstein placed second and Stuttgart took home first place. Sophomore Natalia Woznicki was one of eight players selected for the All-Tournament Team and senior Sierra Dye was selected for the All-Star Team. “Coach Julia and I are so proud of these girls with how they have played on the court this year, as well as how they have developed to become strong young women,” Coach Kenny Byler said. ”They continuously demonstrated to us a fierce determination to play their best in the midst of difficult circumstances and show us success, not only in the win column, but in their personal development as well. These young ladies are truly champions at heart and we are proud of how they will contribute to their school and community this year.” Men Win Second Place The undefeated Wildcats Men’s Volleyball team had a shorter drive than the girls team in their journey to Vicenza to
compete against eight other teams for the European Championship. After beating Sigonella in the semi-finals, the Wildcats battled Marymount International School of Rome (MMI) for the championship. After four action-packed sets, Naples lost to MMI and finished as the second place winners. Senior Andrew Elliott-Smith and junior Austin McKamey were both given All-Tournament and All-Region honors, and McKamey was also named the All-Tournament Most Valuable Player. “This has been one of the best Volleyball seasons I have ever had the honor of coaching. This team has worked, sweated and given their whole hearts to their success and, in return, they have become more than athletes on a court, but brothers and family,” Coach Amber BoldenowPacheco said. “Not only have they have received the respect of their competing teams and coaches for their volleyball skills and their ability to rise to a challenge, their honorable behavior on and off the court has earned them special recognition by officials, as well. They were undefeated all season and won second place in the Tournament, but it feels like first. One game does not change the fact that the Naples Men’s Wildcats are the best team in Europe!” CAPTAIN’S CORNER. . . . . . . . . 2
70%
BASE NOTES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 NAVY HISTORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 FFSC CALENDAR . . . . . . . . . . . 5 SOUND OFF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 MOVIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 JOBS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
70% NEW NAVY COLLEGE WEBSITE . . . . . . . . . . page 11
VETERANS DAY ORIGINS . . . . . . . . . . page 14
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