Wasp celebrates Navy birthday the right way: at sea

Courtesy Photo | The Commanding Officer of USS Wasp, Capt. Lowel D. Crow (center), cuts a ceremonial cake Oct. 13 with Wasp Chaplain Lt. Fulgencio Legaspi (right) and Ship's Serviceman Seaman Huelon Usrey commemorating the 234th birthday of the Navy. Wasp is currently deployed on Southern Partnership Station-Amphib with Destroyer Squadron 40 and a Security Cooperation Marine Air Ground Task Force embarked. Southern Partnership Station is part of the Partnership of the Americas Maritime Strategy that focuses on building interoperability and cooperation in the region to meet common challenges. (U.S. Navy Photo/Petty Officer 3rd Class David Smart)  

10.15.2009

Courtesy Story

USS WASP (LHD 1)   

By Petty Officer 1st Class Andrew McCord
USS Wasp Public Affairs

USS WASP, at sea — Sailors aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp turned out en masse on the mess decks Oct. 13 to participate in celebrating the Navy's 234th birthday. Along with speakers and a cake cutting, there was a special buzz in the air.

Opening the festivities, Master of Ceremonies Chief Petty Officer Anthony Koch noted that it was out of necessity that the Navy's initial two ships, one of which was the first Wasp, were commissioned to serve the fledgling nation, and that they were commissioned with a specific mission.

"I find it both satisfying and fitting that we are participating in an important mission today," said Koch. "Satisfying because this is what each one of us signed up for, and what our predecessors also signed up for: to defend our country, our citizens, and our loved ones. Fitting because on this day — our service's birthday — we are embarking on yet another mission to protect and serve."

Wasp Commanding Officer Captain Lowell D. Crow echoed Koch, and submitted to the audience that, while both the Sailors of yore and the Sailors of today share commonalities, their missions have changed.

"Today we continue to build on the legacy born of our past — working with partners and international partners to stop aggressors, prevent war, and provide aid where needed to victims of natural disasters and war," said Crow. "People sometimes forget that the Navy mission is the same whether we are a country at war or at peace. When conflicts are solved, we don't pack up and go home until the next need arises. We are always there."

Airman Cody Smock said he's glad to be part of a forward deployed unit that is effecting change around the world.

"We're actually out, deployed and doing something really important," said Smock. "And when you think about the fact that it's the Navy's birthday, and that you're a part of the most powerful Navy in the world, you realize that it's a really special day."

While for some this was their first chance to celebrate the Navy's birthday, for others, it was something of a very welcome routine, and offered a moment for reflection.

"This is the 21st time I've celebrated the Navy's birthday, and I believe that in that time the Navy has changed for the better," said Chief Petty Officer Shahid Ahmed. "There's more open-mindedness. [The Navy] is more accepting of new, modern ideas, and they're embracing and managing change effectively."

Wasp and the Security Cooperation Marine Air Ground Task Force are working alongside Mayport-based Destroyer Squadron 40 during a three-month deployment to build and instill interoperability and cooperation between U.S. and partner nation naval forces through a variety of exercises as part of Southern Partnership Station.

• Date Taken: 10.15.2009
• Date Posted: 10.15.2009 19:33
• Story ID: 40185