Photo By Hendrick Dickson | 250320-N-KP445-1737 (VIRGINIA BEACH, VA) Military Sealift Command Commander, Rear Adm....... read more read more
The crew of the Military Sealift Command expeditionary fast transport vessel USNS Cody (T-EPF 14) welcomed aboard 14 seniors from Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Virginia, for a ship visit March 20.
During the visit, the students toured the ship’s mission bay, navigation bridge, medical spaces and the flight deck. They also joined the crew for lunch and observed an awards ceremony hosted by MSC Commander, Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, who took time to talk with them and personally thanked them for visiting the ship.
The event was part of a collaborative effort between MSC and Oscar Smith to provide graduating seniors an opportunity to see firsthand what life is like for Civil Service Mariners (CIVMARs) aboard ships.
For the past four years, Oscar Smith guidance counselors, who help students with their academic, social and career development, have made assertive efforts to ensure seniors understand that MSC provides them a unique opportunity to have a career while serving their country. They have also assisted several future mariners through the application and hiring process.
“We started this program a few years ago to help students interested in becoming mariners through the process of getting credentialed,” said Oscar Smith Guidance Counselor Kelly Morgan. “We help them acquire their TWIC (Transportation Worker Identification Credential) cards, obtain physicals, submit their applications, etc. The students in this group are about 90 percent complete of having everything they need to join MSC when they graduate in June, with the exception of a few who still need passports.”
“As school counselors, our job is to put these kids in the position that is the best fit for them,” added Oscar Smith Guidance Counselor Fred Barber. “We have kids going to college, we have kids going to the military, and we have some kids who are not sure about their future. MSC is a good fit for some of our students and for that reason, we started investing time helping them get there. Today, we have kids who we’ve helped who are coming back and telling their friends what a good opportunity this is - to be a merchant mariner.”
Cody’s Ship Master Capt. Victor Martino’s wife, Christine, is an art teacher at Oscar Smith, and he has visited the school several times to talk with students and share stories about his experiences. However, Martino said this event wasn’t just about Oscar Smith. He believes it is important for MSC and CIVMARs to have a strong bond with local communities.
“The greatest privilege I have serving as Captain is using the powers bestowed on me to not just to command the ship, but to also help the local community, particularly, kids who may be looking for direction and may not be aware of this career path,” said Martino. “Events like this will continue to be an integral part of Military Sealift Command’s interaction with the community as well as our continued expansion of growing and supporting future mariners for the organization.”
The importance of building a strong and lasting partnership between MSC and the community is shared by the counselors who feel ultimately it uplifts the students – a sentiment Morgan summed up using a classic proverb.
“This means a lot,” said Morgan. “It really does ‘take a village to raise a child’ and at Oscar Smith, having this type of partnership within the community is a blessing. We can’t do the things that we do for these students without community and partnership. So we are thankful and grateful for everything they are doing for our students to help them have a brighter future.”
| Date Taken: | 03.20.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 03.27.2025 11:17 |
| Story ID: | 493873 |
| Location: | VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 127 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Oscar Smith High School Seniors Visit USNS Cody, by Hendrick Dickson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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