WASHINGTON SURVEYOR THE
April 21, 2016
By MC3 Jaime Marcial
T HEMANFORRESILIENCY YOUR DEPLOYMENT RESILIENCY counselor, MR. DAMON PRATT By MCSA Krystofer Belknap
GW ’ S RU G BY T E A M
SAILORS COMPETE IN A “GENTLEMAN’S” GAME By MC3 Wyatt Anthony
ON THE DECKPLATES
IMPORTANCE OF A HIGHER EDUCATION
PHOTO of the DAY
ATLANTIC OCEAN (April 19, 2016) – Sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) perform small boat operations. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Devin Bowser
THE
By M C 3 Ja i m e M a r c i a l
MANFORRESILIENCY YOUR DEPLOYMENT RESILIENCY COORDINATOR, MR. DAMON PRATT
I
n 2013, the Navy created the deployment resiliency counselor (DRC) position to provide Sailors aboard aircraft carriers and amphibious-assault ships another avenue to help deal with the stress of life at sea. USS George Washington’s (CVN 73) DRC is Damon Pratt, a graduate of Randolph-Macon and Virginia Commonwealth Universities and licensed clinical social worker and master addictions counselor. “I am here to help Sailors with building resiliency; helping Sailors with day to day stress and just being able to continue to function,” said Damon Pratt, the aircraft carrier USS George Washington’s (CVN
73) deployment resiliency counselor (DRC). “I tend to look more towards the early intervention side, if possible, before things get too serious.” Pratt has been a DRC since December 2014 and has an 8 and-a-half month deployment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) under his belt. “You have to be independent, credentialed and independently licensed,” said Pratt. “We work alone out here, so that’s a master’s degree or doctorate level.” All DRCs hold degrees in fields such as psychology, family therapy and social work. With most Sailors on the ship coming back from recent deployments, getting right back underway can be stressful
for the crew, said Pratt. “What I see the most right now is stress and anxiety,” said Pratt. “What a lot of Sailors are struggling with right now; they finished a long deployment; now they’re out here again and it’s too early for them in their mind.” DRCs offer solutions such as tips to manage anger and anxiety as well as referrals to the ship’s psychologist. “Mr. Pratt and I have an incredibly strong working relationship,” said Lt. Cmdr. Jason Duff, the George Washington’s psychologist. “We operate under a memorandum of understanding. It comes from up above where it determines what kind of patients he sees and what kind of patients I see.”
“I think that just having him aboard has lead to more people stepping up and saying ‘Hey, I need help,’ or ‘I need support with this,’” said Duff. “Somebody might convince themselves that they don’t need help; ‘Well, what I’m dealing with doesn’t rate a psychologist, so I’ll just deal with it on my own,’ but that doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t benefit from the support or help.” This isn’t his first time helping service members. He served as a civilian in the Army Substance Abuse Program at Fort Lee in Prince George County, Virginia, and managed the Army Substance Abuse Program at U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria in Grafenwoehr, Germany.
“I loving helping people, for one,” said Pratt. “I’ve done it for a long time. I’ve worked for three different places in the federal government. I worked for the federal prison system and I’ve worked for the Army before this. I love working for the military.” “It makes me feel good to see a Sailor that wasn’t smiling smile and being there to support them, whether it’s through counseling or the SAPR program, and trying to help them with that as a victim advocate,” said Pratt. “There’s just so many different ways that I can put myself out there to be a resource to the crew and that’s important to me. I love it.” To make an appointment with the DRC send an email to damon. pratt@cvn73.navy.mil or speak to him in person if his door is open.
Sto r y by M C SA K r ys to f e r B e l k n a p
GW’SRUGBYTEAM SAILORS COMPETE IN A “GENTLEMAN’S” GAME
W
inston Churchill once said ”Soccer is a gentleman’s game played by hooligans, and rugby is a hooligan’s game played by gentlemen.” “I think that’s entirely true,” said Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jonathon Price, captain of the ship’s rugby team. “When you step out on the field, no matter what position you’re playing, you don’t have any pads on; you got short-shorts and a jersey, and a number on your back. You really feel a part of something.” The aircraft carrier USS George Washington’s (CVN 73) rugby team is composed of approximately 30 Sailors whose goal is to build community relations, train, and entertain. “I’ve been playing rugby for about six years,” said Price. “When I joined the Navy, I hadn’t played in a long time.” “When I came to the George Washington, I found out the ship had a team, and since then I’ve been playing for the ship” said Price, who took over as team captain after the team’s previous captain transferred. The team is as diverse as the ship’s Sailors and welcomes everybody; no matter how big, small, young, or old. “I haven’t been playing rugby much,” said Master-atArms 2nd Class Anthony A. Koch. “I started with the ship’s team practices back when we were on the Southern Seas deployment. They were a lot of fun. It builds a lot of camaraderie.” “Rugby is for anyone who wants to play,” said Koch. “A lot of it boils down to brute strength, and yet there’s still that element where if you use skill in plays it really works.” The team lined up against teams from other countries while forward deployed to Japan, and during George Washington’s 2015 Southern Seas deployment.
Price described matches played in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Guam and Australia, where the team was presented a plaque and a jersey from the local super rugby team. “Rugby is definitely great for community relations,” said Price. “Playing any sport people love around the world is a means of entertainment and a way to connect with people.” The recent hull swap between the aircraft carriers USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) and Washington made it difficult to keep members on the Washington’s rugby team, said Price. “A lot of people show up just because they want to learn, which is fantastic,” said Price. “For people like me who love rugby and know a lot of the rules, it’s great to show the newer players how to play something that I consider to be the greatest sport ever.” Koch said potential team members should enjoy the physicality of the game. “Practice is good exercise,” said Koch. “It feels good going around, locking shoulders and locking heads with people.” If the physical benefits are not a draw, the excitement and opportunities to interact with new people and new cultures should be, said Price. “It’s a thrill, and it’s super fun to play. If you know anything about rugby, even just an idea, and you’re willing to play, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t try to pursue it. People might think rugby is too dangerous. But we play to have fun, meet people from different countries, and immerse ourselves in their culture,” said Price. Washington’s rugby team is on hiatus, but will begin practicing again soon. Look out for e-mails about upcoming meetings.
CVN MAZE
GAMES CROSSWORD
HARD SUDOKU
Intermediate Sudoku Puzzles by KrazyDad, Book 9
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Take it easy, we're in a hurry.
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Department: Combat Systems/CS-1 Hobbies: Pumping iron, basketball, football and eating Most Memorable Moment in Career:
Flying in a COD and landing on GW
Department: Deck Favorite Sports Team: Pittsburgh Steelers Hobbies: Hunting, fishing and working on his car.
underway
movie
schedule
April 21st 2016
Channel 4 0800 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi 1000 Sisters 1200 Movie Request Call 4988 1400 Joy 1600 The Big Short 1800 The Forest 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2200 The Revenant 2400 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 0200 Norm of the North 0400 My Big Fat Greek Wedding 0600 Despicable Me
Channel 5 0800 The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel 1000 Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer 1200 Meet the Fockers 1400 The Rundown 1600 For a Movie Request Call 4988 1800 People Like Us 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2200 Abraham Lincoln:Vampire Hunter 2400 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 0200 Lawless 0400 Moonrise Kingdom 0600 Trouble with the Curve
Channel 6 Channel 7 0800 Alex Cross 0800 Admission 1000 Sinister 1000 The Host 1200 Gangster Squad 1200 Major League 1400 Broken City 1400 The Marine: Homefront 1600 Movie Request Call 4988 1600 Movie Request Call 4988 1800 Life of Pi 1800 Star Trek: Into Darkness 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2200 Parental Guidance 2200 Iron Man 3 2400 Monsters Inc. 2400 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 0200 Happy Feet 0200 Getaway 0400 Doom 0400 Antz 0600 The Fifth Estate 0600 Ratatouille
staff Commanding Officer CAPT Timothy Kuehhas
Executive Officer CAPT Kenneth Strong
Command Master Chief CMDCM James Tocorzic
Public Affairs Officer LCDR Reann Mommsen
Deputy Public Affairs Officer LTJG Jack Georges
Senior Editor MC2 Brian Flood
Editors MC3 Jessica Gomez MC3 Kris R. Lindstrom
Content
April 22nd 2016
Channel 4 Channel 5 0800 Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax 0800 Zero Dark Thirty 1000 Toy Story 1000 Finding Nemo 1200 Toy Story2 1200 Looper 1400 Toy Story 3 1400 Won’t Back Down 1600 The 5th Wave 1600 Movie Request Call 4988 1800 Dirty Grandpa 1800 Aladdin 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2200 The Hunger Games 2200 My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2400 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2400 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 0200 John Carter 0200 Snitch 0400 The Lucky One 0400 Taken 2 0600 21 Jump Street 0600 Hope Springs Channel 6 0800 Wall-E 1000 Twelve Monkeys 1200 U-571 1400 The Hunt for Red October 1600 Movie Request Call 4988 1800 We Were Soldiers 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2200 K-19 2400 Silent Hill Revelation 0200 Oz, the Great and Powerful 0400 Lincoln 0600 Jack Reacher
Channel 7 0800 Son of God 1000 The Quiet Ones 1200 The Equalizer 1400 Jersey Boys 1600 Movie Request Call 4988 1800 Transformers: Age of Extinction 2000 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 2200 Dawn of the Planet of the Apes 2400 Movie Request Call 4988/7170 0200 Braveheart 0400 Titanic 0600 The Matrix
MC2 Stephane Belcher MC2 Jennifer Case MC2 Loni Lopez MC3 Devin Bowser MC3 Jaime Marical MC3 Wyatt Anthony MCSN Kashif Basharat MCSN Clemente Lynch MCSN Michael Wiese MCSA Krystofer Belknap The Washington Surveyor is an authorized publication for Sailors serving aboard USS George Washington (CVN 73). Contents herein are not the visions of, or endorsed by the U.S. government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy or the Commanding Officer of USS George Washington. All news releases, photos or information for publication in The Washington Surveyor must be submitted to the Public Affairs Officer (7726).