Two sailors go above and beyond to mentor

Photo By Petty Officer 3rd Class Gerald Dudley Reynolds | CAMP PENDLETON, California (Feb. 23, 2015) – Sailors, assigned to Assault Craft Unit (ACU) 5, are greeted by loved ones after returning home from a seven month deployment with the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group (ARG). The Makin Island ARG, and the embarked 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are returning to homeport San Diego following a seven-month maiden deployment to the Western Pacific and the U.S. Central Command area of operation. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gerald Dudley Reynolds/Released)  

USS SAN DIEGO, AT SEA

02.24.2015

Courtesy Story

U.S. Navy           

By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gerald Dudley Reynolds, USS San Diego Public Affairs

PACIFIC OCEAN - Sailors and Marines aboard the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego (LPD 22) weave in and out of passageways as they carry about with their busy schedules. For two Sailors, however, it doesn’t matter how busy their schedules get, they always make time for others in a way that they hope will pay forward - with mentorship.

Cryptologic Technician (Collection) 2nd Class Jarreau Moore and Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Victor Mendez-Lopez, having mentored 15 Sailors and Marines between the two of them, believe that mentorship is the greatest gift that anyone can give another person.

Mendez-Lopez would use the mentorship that he received from Chief Intelligence Specialist Jon Williams and inspiration from the Greek philosopher Socrates as stepping stones and guidelines on how to be a mentor with the right mindset.

“Thanks to the mentorship I received, I learned how to organize my thoughts and eventually became the Sailor that sets the example for everyone else,” said Mendez-Lopez. “Some junior Sailors have never been away from their families and I try to be that person that they can look up to.”

He also added, “You don’t always have to give advice; sometimes listening is all they need.”

Moore listed Senior Chief Cryptologic Technician (Collection) Justin Miller and Martin Luther King, Jr. as his inspiration.

You must control yourself before you can help others,” said Moore. “If you don’t have self-control then you can’t give advice from inside yourself. The advice you offer must be based off of experience.”

Operations Specialist 2nd Class Michael Gomez has used the advice given to him by Moore and Mendez-Lopez to better his leadership style, and himself as a person.

“I owe a lot of my leadership style to how I was mentored,” said Gomez. “My mentors taught me that communication is the most essential part of mentorship.”

Despite their busy schedules, Moore and Mendez-Lopez are always approachable in the busy passageway and enjoy sitting down with new people.

“I love getting to know people and talking to them,” said Moore. “I found out that by talking to people and offering them console, I also get to know myself a little better.”

Mentorship may mean different things to different people, but for Moore and Mendez-Lopez, they learned that it’s the little things that others appreciate and sometimes just talking to one another is all it takes.

San Diego, part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, is on a deployment with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit to promote peace and freedom of the seas by providing security and stability in the 7th Fleet area of operations.

• Date Taken: 02.24.2015
• Date Posted: 02.24.2015 23:34
• Story ID: 155315
• Location: USS SAN DIEGO, AT SEA