Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Malcolm Cohens-Ashley | U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Calvin Tanner aboard the MV Roy P. Benavidez, at Port of Ashdod,...... read more read more
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For the fourth time in his career, U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Calvin Tanner has found himself in the Mediterranean Sea. The former U.S. Navy Sailor served three rotations to the area but is back as a U.S. Army Soldier supporting the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore (JLOTS) humanitarian aid mission to Gaza.
Tanner joined the U.S. Navy in January 2001 as an operations specialist. He served 11 years of active-duty service in the Navy, followed by 10 years in the Navy Reserve, and has deployed four times. Despite his extensive experience at sea, he did not anticipate gaining more while serving in the U.S. Army.
“It’s funny that I'm back on a ship and no longer in the Navy,” said the Savannah, Ga. native.
He currently serves in the 11th Transportation Battalion, 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary) as a cargo specialist, and has accumulated more than two decades worth of valuable wisdom which he applies to his current leadership role for the JLOTS mission.
“The work is similar, [but] this time around I'm more seasoned and I'm around people that aren't seasoned in regard to water or ship life,” he remarked. “I tell my Soldiers about the stories from the Sailors that I came up with.”
The change in service and uniform has allowed him to see maritime operations from a different angle.
"As Sailors, we don't get to see what happens once the ship leaves, but for this mission, I get to see how it operates once it gets to land,” he said. “Seeing how hard the Army is working with the platform that we don't get to use all the time and how the Army is spearheading this is eye-opening."
| Date Taken: | 06.04.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 07.22.2024 12:31 |
| Story ID: | 476730 |
| Location: | MEDITERRANEAN SEA |
| Web Views: | 30 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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