Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Gregory Johnson | PINELLAS COUNTY, Florida (June 2, 2023) – Keyshawna Childs speaks during her...... read more read more
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YOKOSUKA, Japan (June 7, 2023) – “Join the Navy, see the world,” is a phrase that certainly resonates with many Sailors who have left home for overseas service, but that doesn’t mean home isn’t in many of their hearts and minds.
Operations Specialist 1st Class Sean Cassidy, from St. Petersburg, Florida, is one of those Sailors. Despite serving six years overseas, presently aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Milius (DDG 69), homeported in Yokosuka, Japan, Cassidy has found a way to help out a Florida community from more than 7,000 miles away.
In 2022, Cassidy, his sister, Joanne Dauphin, and mother Kathleen, founded Cassidy Charity to raise college money for students attending Pace Center for Girls Pinellas County, a non-profit high school dedicated to providing academic, counseling and social services to girls affected by various forms of trauma. Since its inception, the Cassidy Charity has raised $12,000 for student scholarships and school repairs.
“We believe it’s important for kids of all backgrounds to have an opportunity to achieve their potential,” said Cassidy. “Our highest hope is that we can look back years from now and see a long list of Cassidy Charity scholarship recipients who have gone to college and succeeded.”
Cassidy and Dauphin came up with the idea for Cassidy Charity in honor of their father, Hugh, who passed away in 2021. With the help of matching contributions from Dauphin’s company, they raised $4,000 in the first year and doubled that in 2023.
“Our dad really focused on financial independence with us and he never let his lack of education stop him from learning,” said Dauphin. “He taught us the stock market and the importance of saving, so when we decided to find a way to honor his legacy, I immediately thought of Pace Center for Girls. The school focuses on at-risk youth and it made me think of my dad and the difficulties he had growing up. We are just humbled to be able to be a blessing in the lives of others while honoring him.”
This year, the charity gave away scholarships to graduating seniors Anija Butler and Keyshawna Childs, who received the awards while watching a pre-recorded video from Cassidy during the school’s graduation ceremony, June 2. An additional donation was given to the school for maintenance and repairs.
“I want to thank Ms. Dauphin and Mr. Cassidy for the scholarship and the video,” said Childs. “I wasn’t expecting to receive the award today, so I’m thankful for you doing this today in front of my family. Thank you for the ship to send me the video while you are currently on deployment. Thank you for your service and letting me go to college while you are serving my county. I can’t say thank you enough.”
Childs has been accepted to the Savannah Culinary Institute at Savannah Technical College and has also applied to Atlanta Technical College and Morgan State University.
Milius is assigned to Commander, Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, the Navy’s largest forward-deployed DESRON and the U.S. 7th Fleet’s principal surface force.
U.S. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
| Date Taken: | 06.07.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.12.2023 01:31 |
| Story ID: | 446718 |
| Location: | JP |
| Web Views: | 121 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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