ABOARD USS CLEVELAND, At Sea – Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Bing Pang, boatswain's mate, from Alhambra, Calif., is a supervisor in Deck Department on board amphibious transport dock ship USS Cleveland.
Cleveland is the lead vessel for Pacific Partnership 2011. Pacific Partnership is the Pacific Fleet’s annual mission to Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands to engage in partnerships with host nations by improving dialogue, effecting a lasting, positive change, and employing subject matter expert exchanges in order to improve the capabilities and interoperability of the U.S. and partner nations when dealing with natural and man-made disasters.
“It's really important to show the world that the Navy and the United States is there to help people in times of peace, not just during times of war,” said Pang. “Coming here shows us how other people live, and I think that's something this mission helps us understand.
Cleveland will visit the Kingdom of Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and the Federated States of Micronesia, and the military group will be accompanied by non-government organizations like Project HOPE, Vets Without Borders and the University of California, San Diego Pre-Dental Society.
“I originally joined the Navy for the college benefits, but the Navy has given me many new experiences.” said Pang. “I never thought I'd have the opportunity to drive a RHIB (rigid-hull inflatable boat) full of people who are going to provide medical treatment to people in Tonga, but here I am. It's great.”
Pacific Partnership developed as a mission following the tsunami in 2004 which devastated Indonesia and much of the South Pacific. Since then, Pacific Partnership has treated 210,000 patients in 15 countries, and is supported by all U.S. uniformed services and partner nations that include Australia, Japan, and New Zealand. Other nations providing teams include Canada, Spain, Malaysia and France.
BM2 Pang is the son of Ada Wang of Alhambra, Calif.
For more news from Pacific Partnership, visit:
www.cpf.navy.mil/pp11
http://pacificpartnership/wordpress.com
www.facebook/pacificpartnership
http://twitter.com/pacificpartner
| Date Taken: | 05.02.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 05.02.2011 13:44 |
| Story ID: | 69723 |
| Location: | ABOARD USS CLEVELAND, USAFRICOM, AT SEA |
| Web Views: | 12 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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